Silver Maiden
by CSKitten
Summary: With drastic changes and the risk of unrequited love looming at her door, what is the young maiden of the North to do? Will the after effects of her change make her lose what she holds dear? Will the love of her life turn away without a backwards glance?
1. Prologue

Silver Maiden

By CSKitten

Prologue

A pair of sorrowful blue-gray eyes watched, mystified and down heartened, as the moon trekked its slow path through the inky night sky. The transformation was almost complete. In just three more days the blue eyed mistress would be grown. A lady in both Youkai and Ninjen eyes. O how the young maiden hated that simple fact.

As the days had gone by, her eyes changed from their once vibrant blue to their current dismal blue gray, yet she knew that by tomorrow her eye color would change once again. On the night of the third day... while the red moon is at its fullest, her eyes will turn a silver so bright even the sun would be envious. Her hair will grow she was sure. Perhaps her body would grow also, in some fashion or another. The extent of her transformation was unknown but she had no doubts about its happening. It was unavoidable.

Tears welled up in the maiden's eyes only to spill over and slide down her fair cheeks. Life as she knew it was almost at its end. What would her friends that had become her second family say? Would they accept her change? Would they be distraught and angry at her for the lies she told? What was she to do?

She watched through her teary vision as the moon took on a golden tinge. What would He say? A painful sob escaped from her now chapped lips at the thought of her intended. The man that had stolen her heart the day their eyes had first met. Her mind was flooded with tantalizing visions of his long, platinum hair and fiery, golden eyes that were set in such a handsome face.

O to touch that pale face and caress its soft skin without fear of rebuttal. To press her soft body against his firm one would be her own sinful delight. Her intended was a glorious specimen she knew, and her wish to stand next to him as his mate was so powerful that even reason failed her at times.

Of course, he didn't know he was her intended. The agreement was between her father and his long before their births and his father died long before the great Lord had the chance to tell his son. The only reason she knew was due to her surrogate mother's explanation to what the young maiden should come to expect for her life because her father had died shortly after her birth. Her mother gave her the signed parchment to prove it.

Once her intended saw the cracked paper, she knew he wouldn't deny it. They would wed and spend the rest of their lives together. But the thing that made her heart lurch into her throat, the thing that made her cry out in pure agony, was because this handsome man, son of a great Youkai Lord, would never love her.

With that thought, the maiden collapsed onto the ground and sobbed. She did not care about the dangers of being alone and defenseless in the middle of a forest clearing. She was unconcerned with the fact that her friends were anxiously waiting for her safe return. Undoubtedly she was also unaware of the same golden eyes she had dreamed of for the past three years watching her intently.


	2. Chapter One

Silver Maiden

By CSKitten

Disclaimer: I do not own Inu Yasha, its characters, the ideas of Rumiko Takahashi, Inu Yasha's creator. I do, on the other hand, own this story and plot.

Glossary (In order of appearance):

Miko – Priestess (Kagome and Kikyou are both priestesses)

Kami – god

Hanyou – Half demon

-Sama – suffix for Lord or Lady or a term of respect.

Houshi – Buddhist monk

Kimono – a traditional Japanese gown worn by both males and females. Usually has, at least, two layers to it.

Sakura – Cherry blossoms

Eri – The removable collar/neckband of a kimono.

Obi – The wide sash worn around the waist, on top of the kimono, tied at the back.

Obi-Jime – A cord that is tied around the centre of the obi.

Geta – Wooden sandals/footwear, worn by both sexes.

Tabi – Split toe socks.

-Chan – An affectionate sign of respect to someone you're familiar with.

Inu – Dog

Shikon no Tama – Jewel of Four Souls

Ningen – Human

Neko - Cat

Ja Ne – Goodbye

Youkai – Demon

Okaa – Mother

Otou - Father

Kitsune – Fox (Shippou is a kitsune)

Chapter One

Kagome sat in front of the campfire, deep in thought. She watched the fire with emotionless eyes as the embers crackled and popped while her friends focused on her blank face.

Sango glanced at her priestly husband of two years and shared a disgusted grimace with him then went back to staring at the young woman that was, both, her friend and sister.

The Miko had been acting very strange the last few weeks. She constantly left the campsite minutes after Inu Yasha would run off, answering the call of his dead lover's summon. However, instead of following him, she went in the opposite direction -- only to return a few hours later with a blank stare and strangely colored eyes. It was all very confusing.

Both Sango and Miroku had a fair idea as to whom it was that made their dear Kagome act this way. It was the same man that had run off two hours ago at the call of a walking corpse. The same man that she had chased after for years, in her determination to stop his next foolish mistake. The same man that had walked into the campsite two hours ago, with a slightly disheveled look to his clothes and a smug expression on his usually handsome face. It was disgusting.

Sango scoffed and glared at Inu Yasha, as the man approached the still Miko, most likely to order her to cook for him. _Damn him. What right does he have to order her around like that? He can make his own food._ The slayer frowned at the sight of her young friend's slow movements as she obediently went about the task of preparing the dish. _She's barely aware of her surroundings! It's like she is dead inside...._ O_h Kagome... What can I do to help you?_

Sadly, there was nothing the exterminator could do for the Miko. As the eighteen year old woman knelt by the fire, seemingly calm and patient on the outside, her mind buzzed with jumbled words and phrases. _How am I supposed to explain to them what's about to happen? Even if I do explain to them they won't fully understand till tomorrow night!_

She was aware of the worried expressions on her friends' faces and, frankly, she was worried too. She didn't need the added concern of her friends to make her more depressed though. Her own inner turmoil was already driving her insane. They cared so much about her and she prayed to the Kami above that they still would after her secret was revealed to them.

Kagome shuddered from the cold that filled her heart and seeped into her bones. Her hands shook as she poured the finished ramen into a large bowl and called for Inu Yasha to retrieve it.

"About time, bitch! If you would've spent more time concentrating on my ramen and less time daydreaming I'd be done eating by now!" cracked the Hanyou as he jumped down from his perch and snatched the bowl from the Miko's hands. His white, puppy ears twitched on top of his head as he sat down next to the fire and slurped up his food like a starving man.

"You're awfully quiet tonight, Kagome-Sama." commented the Houshi. "Shouldn't you be a bit more excited? Today is your birthday after all. This is supposed to be a happy occasion!" Kagome looked at the violet eyed monk and smiled slightly at him but otherwise kept silent.

Worry bubbled over within Sango as she moved to sit next to her sister. "Did you not like the presents we gave you?"

The younger girl smiled as she thought of the precious gifts given to her earlier that day. Her adopted son, Shippou, had given her a deep blue satin choker with a silver bell attached at the middle. The bell rested perfectly at the hollow of her throat.

Sango had given her a gorgeous royal blue kimono made of light weight silk. Silver doves and sakura blossoms were stitched in a detailed and intricate pattern, starting from the bottom right side of the gown and working up to her left shoulder and arm. It was as if the birds were caught up in a great gust of wind that was raising them to the heavens. The most interesting part of the kimono, to Kagome at least, was the long slits that reached up to her mid-thigh. "For ease of movement." the slayer had explained. The kimono also came with a lovely eri of such a striking ice blue that the Miko couldn't help but imagine that it was the same color as her father's eyes.

Miroku had purchased a black obi that shimmered in any light as if it was made of black diamonds. On the inside of the obi were protection wards that were to never weaken as long as her heart still beat. A silver obi-jime that had two talismans hanging from it, representing love and fortune, was also included. It was heart warming to know that he worried about her well being so much.

Even Inu Yasha pitched in on her outfit. He had given her black lacquered geta and black tabi that reached her mid thigh. It was certainly a very surprising and uncharacteristic thing for the Hanyou to do, but she appreciated it nonetheless.

The bamboo box they put it all in was beautiful in its own right, with its etched carving of dragons and stars. Her friends had spent months saving up to buy her such extravagant gifts and it warmed her heart to know they cared for her so much. Their love, or in Inu Yasha's case begrudging affection, for her meant the world to the young Miko. Which made what she was about to say and do all the more difficult.

Kagome looked at Sango and gave her one of her customary bright smiles that, for some reason, did not reach her eyes. "I love the gifts, Sango-chan. Really! They are all so beautiful." the Miko said, not missing the slight twitch to the Hanyou's ears indicating he was listening even with his back turned. The Miko's oddly light gray eyes landed on the violet eyes of the monk. "The reason I have been so quiet is because I need to tell you all something, but I have been having a difficult time wording it in my mind."

Inu Yasha's quick temper ignited as he jumped up and waved an accusing finger at the woman. "DON'T YOU DARE SAY YOU WANT TO GO BACK HOME, YOU LOUSY BITCH! YOU JUST GOT BACK YESTERDAY!" he shrieked.

Kagome sighed and gave the Hanyou an icy stare as her son's tail twitched. "Please be quiet, Inu Yasha. You'll wake up Shippou!" The inu's ears flattened against his skull as he sat back down and huffed.

As if oblivious to Inu Yasha's outburst, Miroku smiled reassuringly at the girl he'd come to see as a sister of sorts. A sister he used to enjoy groping, yes, but a sister nonetheless. "Kagome-Sama, please do not be afraid to talk to us. We are your friends, and we are more than willing to listen." At that, the Miko let a true smile pass her lips. Then, as quick as it came, it left and she went back to frowning down at her lap.

"I'm leaving."

The young woman prayed no one heard her words but the darkening look on the Hanyou's face told her otherwise. For what seemed like hours, the words simply hung in the air, echoing within the Hanyou's skull.

Without so much as a warning, the Hanyou flew over the fire and had the Miko in a death grip. His blood was boiling as he held the Miko two feet off the ground by her frail neck.

He felt himself losing control as his beast commanded him to teach the impudent wench a lesson. All the while, the other ningens of the group watched with shocked horror frozen on their faces.

"You're not going anywhere." He ground out, his claws accentuation his every word as they dug into the female's neck. "You're going to stay here like a good bitch and help me finish the Shikon no Tama. Once it's complete I'm gonna kill you... but not before I bend you over and fuck your brains out, of course. If you're a good fuck I might even let you live so you can warm my bed like Kikyou can't!"

Inu Yasha looked at the girl and smirked wickedly. The fiery Miko was limp in his grasp as she stared at him with blank eyes. It was all too pleasurable for the Hanyou. Two bitches for the price of one, it would seem. What could be better? He brought the girl close to his face and breathed against her lips, enjoying the shudder that he felt tingle down her body. Slowly, his lips descended on hers... but before they reached its goal he felt a sharp stinging pain to his head and then nothing at all.

Kagome slowly got up and away from the unconscious male's grasp and let out a shuddering breath of repulsion. This was all becoming too much yet she knew it would just get worse. She glanced at Miroku and smiled weakly at him, thankful that he broke free of his stupor in time to stop Inu Yasha.

"Are you alright?" Sango questioned as she approached her friend and examined the four bleeding wounds on her neck.

The younger woman smiled gently at the slayer and rested a hand on her shoulder. "I'm fine. Just a little shaken, that's all. Please, don't worry. Wounds heal right?"

At this, the older woman frowned at her friend. "Of course, Kagome-chan." She glanced at her husband to see him already getting out the first aid kit. "Come. Let's take care of your wounds, ne?" With a smile she gripped the younger woman's hand to lead her to a more comfortable area, only to meet resistance. Looking back at the still Miko, Sango once again asked, "Are you sure you're alright, Kagome-chan?"

Kagome gently pulled her hand away from the Slayer's grasp and smiled. "I'm sure, but I really do need to get going. I'll be back tomorrow night and I'll explain everything then. Not a moment sooner though." At this a bit of the woman's spark came back as she winked at her sister.

Miroku stepped up to the two women and, after wrapping an arm around his wife's waist, said "We will await your return, Kagome-Sama, and we'll keep Inu Yasha at bay also." To prove his point, the Houshi took his staff and hit the silver haired buffoon on the head again, adding an even larger bump to the first.

Laughing gently, the Miko looked at her two best friends and smiled brightly. "Thank you so much, you guys! I really appreciate it. Um... Two more things though..." The couple looked at one another then back at the Miko and nodded for her to continue. "Well, first, I need to borrow Kirara obviously...."

Hearing her name, the tiny fire neko looked at the woman and trilled cutely before transforming into her larger form. Kagome nodded at the neko then looked back at the couple.

"Second... You guys are gonna have a visitor tomorrow night. You must not attack him though! If you don't attack him, he won't attack you, okay?" At this, the older couple blinked curiously but nodded anyway.

Letting out the breath she didn't even realize she was holding Kagome smiled once more at her friends then went to pack up her things.

The monk watched as his friend went about getting ready. His mind filled with unanswered questions. What was going on? Where was Kagome leaving to? Who was this mystery guest? One thing he was certain of though, Kagome was acting like her old self and that eased both his nerves and his wife's greatly.

After the Hanyou was effectively knocked out a third time, courtesy of Sango, the fully packed Kagome walked over to the fire neko and settled herself on top of its broad back. With her bag comfortably on her shoulders and the box resting across her lap, she looked at her smiling friends and grinned back at them. _'Please smile like this when I see you next time...'_ she thought. Her eyes strayed to her sleeping son, curled up on top of the sleeping bag she had bought him a year ago. _'I love you, sweetie. Mommy will be back soon.'_

As Kirara started her ascent into the sky Kagome called out, "Watch over Shippou for me, please! I'll see you all tomorrow night, I swear! Ja ne!!" With a final wave, she was off, leaving an unconscious Hanyou, worried monk, concerned slayer, and a sleeping child behind. At least for tonight.

~*~

Kagome glanced at her watch and let out a nervous breath. It was eleven o'clock, which meant she had an hour to prepare. After flying for a few more moments, she directed Kirara to land in a clearing. There was a river about half a mile away so it would be as good of place as any for now. Hopping down from its broad back, Kagome turned and smiled at the fire neko. "Thank you, Kirara. I appreciate it."

The neko purred contentedly and nuzzled her head against the Miko's stomach. She knew what was happening to the Miko and was willing to help in any way possible. Kagome understood the beast's growls and purrs of acceptance and smiled wider.

"Thank you, my friend. I'm afraid I am going to need you to do me one last favor, though." The Miko pulled out a sealed piece of parchment from the side of her bag and tied it around the neko's neck. "I need you to deliver this to Sesshoumaru-Sama right away. It's critical that he receive it. Once it's in his hands you can go back to Sango, alright?"

The neko nodded obediently and flew off in search of the stoic Lord. Once Kirara was out of sight Kagome took a deep breath and started walking towards her new destination. It was going to be an interesting night she was sure.

~*~

Walking into the cave she found it to be just as she left it. The food and water supplies was untouched and the bedding she had left between the two rock pillars was clean and neat. She had found the small cave a month ago and was instantly entranced by its beauty. The whole cave was filled with veins of jade, and, thanks to the large hole at the top of the cave, the moonlight made it all glitter and sparkle. The constant drip of the surrounding stalactites also added a soothing melody throughout the cave.

Deciding it was as good of place as any, she had gone about the task of making it livable for her visits. She had known that the cave would prove useful to her in the future, and she hadn't been wrong. She'd be safe here for the night.

The maiden placed her extra supplies next to her food reserves and then stepped over to the small fire pit she had made. Kneeling by the dry wood she made a blazing fire with quick, practiced ease. Once that was done, she got up to fetch some supplies from her stash.

As the flame crackled pleasantly, she placed a pot of water onto a flat rock beside the fire. _'Perhaps tea will help calm my nerves...'_ she thought sadly. _'But it won't heal the heart ache.' _Shame washed over the small mistress as she thought of the past and the lies she told to keep up her facade.

She had known that she was in the wrong the moment she said she was "just a human." That every battle where she placed herself as the weakest link would be thrown at her in the future, along with questions such as "Why didn't you do this?" or "Why didn't you stop that?" Every lie was another nail in her coffin... and yet, even with the knowledge that it would come back to haunt her later, she did it anyway.

Perhaps she was masochistic? It wouldn't be all too surprising if she was since she surely felt the pain now. Undoubtedly, it would get worse tomorrow night she was sure, when she saw the horror, the pain, and, worst of all, the betrayal on her friend's faces. Weren't masochists supposed to feel pleasure from the pain though? Maybe she wasn't too overly masochistic, because all she could feel was the pain that clenched at her heart.

Noticing the water was hot enough; the woman removed the pot from beside the fire and poured the steaming liquid over the tea leaves within her mug. As the water started to change colors, she thought of her own color changing eyes and her mood plummeted. _Couldn't at least one thing in my life be easy?_

She wondered if perhaps there was someone else as demented and terrible as her. Though perhaps not... no one could be as heartless yet desperate for love as she was, right? No one could possibly understand the pain of Changing like she soon would on this terrible night, this night where everything will forever change.

Once her tea had steeped enough, she picked it up and stood intent on getting some rest before the time came. As she was about to take that first step towards her makeshift futon, her body came to a shuddering stop. The mug slipped from her fingers and clattered to the ground, unnoticed, as the maiden turned and started walking out of the cave with jerky, slow movements.

_'What's going on?_ _What's happening to me? Why can't I control myself?' _Once outside of the cave's mouth, her body continued to move of its own accord as her eyes stared up at the full moon hanging within the inky black sky, the very red moon that would seal her fate.

Her breath hitched in her throat as she started to mentally prepare herself, only to slide to her knees and scream with her fists against her eyes. Preparation was lost on her as the pain wreaked havoc across her body. She felt the sweat cling to her as her skin rippled and moved. _'Kami-Sama, help me!'_

The maiden fell to her side and sobbed. Every breath burned her lungs, every move she made sent shock waves of white hot pain throughout her body but she just couldn't stop crying. She felt everything within her body move and tear and she couldn't stop it.

She gnashed down on her teeth as hard as she could, only to gasp, in shocked realization, as she heard the multiple cracks and felt the weight and tasted the blood on her tongue. She had broken her own teeth! Her eyes dilated and her muscles locked as she vomited harshly onto the forest floor. The numbing shock, however, didn't last long. The fire in her body had begun to center around her jaw and she felt the sharp pain as long, milky white fangs forced their way through her gums.

Next, the fire moved to her ears and seemed to burn them off her skull. Then it moved to the top of her head to branch off and out of her skin on both sides. By the time it was done she thought her head would explode from the loud, earth shattering sounds she was surprised she could still here.

The fire continued to move throughout her body for hours. It was attacking every muscle and bone in her body, till she felt like she was going to burn to death from the agony. The fire went so far as to push out her nails and replace them with long, black claws.

The spasming maiden moved onto her back and stretched into a terrible arc. The sadistic, bone melting magma had wrapped around her spine, stretching and lengthening it till it pushed out of her body.

As her mind swirled within her own personal hell for hours, the mistress' thoughts were of the only thing she truly wanted and loved the most. His golden eyes stared at her within her hazy, stricken mind; her body shuddered once more as she screamed the name of her love.

~*~

The Lord of the Western Lands sat before his low desk in boredom. He let out another long sigh as he signed decrees and laws, one after the other, in quick percussion. He hated this part of being Lord. Especially, when he came across another letter from a neighboring Lord or noblemen, asking him to marry their daughters. Their daughters were all too loud, vain, and simply too stupid to hold his attention for even a moment.

None of those loose tramps could hold a candle to the woman he desired. Therefore, each marriage proposal was answered with the same pretty letter that used the same pretty words to say the same vulgar meaning: "Hell no." Though it seemed that the pretty words would not last long for the more determined lot. Thankfully, he will not have to deal with them once the woman, that had been haunting his thoughts for years, came to her senses.

O what a glorious day that would be. For him to hold her curvy body to his firm one. To kiss her pink lips till they were bruised. To travel his hand down her back and grip her nice, round a-

"SESSHOUMARU-SAMA! SESSHOUMARU-SAMA!!"

The stoic Youkai Lord sighed as he stood from his desk and opened the large lacquered doors to see his retainer, Jaken, starring up at him with large, yellow eyes. Jaken collapsed onto his knees at the Lord's feet and blubbered out, "Please spare this lowly Jaken, Sesshoumaru-Sama, but there is an enemy demon on its way to the castle!"

Sesshoumaru's face stayed cold and unimpressed as he stared down at the noisy toad.

"Do you know who it is?"

"It's that blasted fire neko from Inu Yasha's group, Milord!"

"Hn."

The tall Lord walked past the hyperventilating toad and outside his castle into the front courtyard, his face cold and calm as usual. At least, on the outside he was. On the inside, his mind was abuzz with possible scenarios and reasons as to why the neko dared to approach his compound.

After a few minutes the beast came to land in front of the Lord and, to his great surprise though he'd be damned if he let anyone know that, the neko bowed low at his feet and gave a submissive mewl. The Lord barked in acknowledgement of the neko's submission and the large animal stood up straight and lifted its head high. About to reprimand the neko for acting out of turn, the tall Lord noticed the parchment hanging from the Youkai's neck.

Nodding in understanding, he removed the message and then nodded at the beast, who in turn nodded back and bowed once more before leaving the castle the same way it came. Knowing the neko was done and would not bother him again this night, Sesshoumaru walked back into his castle. Once he was back in his den, he once again, sat down at his desk to deal with business. With a swipe of his claw, he broke the wax seal and opened the letter to see what it had to say.

"_Dear Sesshoumaru-Sama,_

_I'm sorry for the short notice, but I must request an audience with you tomorrow night. This is an urgent matter, and I need you there. Really, it is in your best interest if you come - If not for you then for your father. Please meet me at Inu Yasha's campsite tomorrow night. Your intended is waiting for you. _

_Your comrade in this desperate endeavourer,_

_Kagome – Miko of the Shikon no Tama"_

If the Miko was trying to be vague, she had done an excellent job. The Lord had too many questions flowing through his head, and he knew he probably wouldn't get them answered until he met with the Miko himself. It was an extremely annoying thought, considering his disapproval of being kept in the dark.

_So, it would seem that I have a meeting with the tiny woman. Well then, I must prepare accordingly._ The Lord let an uncharacteristic smile spread across his lips. _This will be most interesting._

_~*~_

Something was crawling on her nose. It felt strange and it tickled. Speaking of her nose, what smelled so terrible? She sniffed delicately and nearly gagged. Ugh..., it smelled disgusting!

The young woman opened her eyes and screamed loud enough to hurt her own ears. There, on her nose, was a beady-eyed caterpillar. She jumped up and quickly brushed the thing off her face, whining lightly about why Kami-Sama would ever create something so nasty.

Now something was tickling the rest of her maiden looked down slowly. _Oh Kami-Sama please no... _On her chest and all over her legs, were large, furry caterpillars.

"EEP!!!"

The woman quickly wiped off all the offending bugs with violent swipes while screaming to the Heavens about the Kami's lack in judgment. The woman shuddered as she flicked off the last offensive insect and stuck her tongue at it. 'Nasty creature... Though you'd think I'd be used to it after the Change.'

Her body froze as realization seeped in and last night's memories flooded into her head.

The maiden remembered the pain. The terror she had felt. Yet, now she seemed fine. Aside from the facts that she had a splitting headache from all the loud sounds in the forest and she could barely breathe from the smells... she was fine.

The maiden walked towards her temporary camp only to stop and come to two more realizations. First, she was a youkai now. No longer a weak and worthless ningen, she was finally a true youkai!

The newly transformed woman glanced down and grimaced. Second, she now knew where the horrible smell was coming from and she didn't much like it. Sighing, she once again started walking, though this time to a near by stream, dragging her left foot, to get rid of the steaming matter that caked itself there, as she went.

After taking a short, icy bath in the stream, the woman stepped out and took some well-deserved time to examine herself. The Change certainly changed her that was for sure. She was an inch or two taller now, and more toned, and slender. There were other parts of her body, though, that had changed so drastically she thought she was dreaming! Somehow, even her skin was tanner!

As the woman poked and prodded at her new body, she wondered if anyone would recognize her. If not, what would happen? The woman sighed lightly and with a voice like gentle bells chiming in the winds she whispered, "I guess I'll find out soon enough. Okaa-Sama... Otou-Sama... please.... Give me your strength."

~*~

Inu Yasha was pissed. He was beyond pissed. He was so pissed he could piss. First, he wakes up from a twelve-hour unconscious spell to a hysterical kitsune that was crying about his missing mother. The woman that Inu Yasha usually referred to as "Shard Detector" nowadays. Then his damn half-brother showed up two hours ago claiming that he had business with the Miko.

To add even more flavoring to his shit-flavored ramen the bastard had a letter from the wench with him to back him up. So what do the other ningens in his group do? Yup, they go onto Mr. Icicle-Up-the-Butt's side.

Inu Yasha continued to glare daggers at his "older brother" with malice. _What I wouldn't give to wipe the smug look off that bastard's face_... He growled menacingly at his brother one more time before turning to monk beside him. "When is that bitch gonna get here, damn it?!"

Miroku opened one eye to stare at the Hanyou that had ruined his meditation session. "She'll be here shortly, Inu Yasha." he stated. "Give her time." The boy growled darkly, "I've already given her time if she doesn't get here in the next-"

"Inu Yasha."

He looked up at his brother and barked, "What?!"

Sesshoumaru stared at the whelp boredly. "Stop wasting your breath and use your nose. Do you not smell the youkai approaching or is your hanyou nose really as dull as a ningen's?"

The Hanyou in question was about to bark out a reply till he heard a gasp and a rustling of leaves. He turned and felt his mouth drop as he stared at the youkai female walking into the campsite clearing. All of his thoughts were quickly forgotten, as he stared at the beauty.

The woman was about five foot three with curves that would make any man desperate. The chin length hair around her face was sparkling silver in the moonlight, while the rest was an inky black that reached down to the back of her knees. It looked so soft and full.

On top of her head, amongst the long locks, were two large, black, pointed ears with silver tips. It would seem that she also had a long black tail with a silver tip to match her ears. _'Definitely a neko youkai...' _his mind supplied for him. The rest of him was too absorbed in staring at this creature to care though.

Inu Yasha's golden eyes traveled down further to stare into the temptress's cat like silver ones. Those sultry eyes shone brightly with such fire he felt his own body burn. Her long eyelashes added to her eyes beckoning appeal instead of away and he wondered how they would feel on his cheek if her eyes were to slide closed in pleasure as he kissed her. He had to tear his eyes away from hers to inspect the rest of her.

In the middle of her forehead was, what appeared to be, a four-pointed star with a black center. There was also a slender, curved stripe, of a royal blue color, on either side of her tanned face. His eyes followed the path of her small button nose down to her plump lips that were such a tantalizing red that his desire for her grew tenfold.

His view moved down to her long neck. His beast was more than anxious to see if this creature was mated or not. Sadly, he couldn't be sure if she was or not, due to the blue choker wrapped around her neck.

A very familiar looking choker, and now that he thought about it the woman's clothes were also very familiar. Even her face was striking a cord in the Hanyou's hazy mind. He just didn't know why.

Then the slight wind shifted and the woman's long hair blew towards him, dancing in the breeze, and he smelled it. The scent of cherries, vanilla, and fresh spring water was unmistakable even on this body. _'No... It couldn't be!'_ he thought but before he could stop himself, before he could even think to stop himself even, his horror stricken voice whispered in silent question the name he had been on his mind for such a long time.

"K-Kagome?"

~*~*~*~*~*~

CSKitten: Comments are appreciated!


	3. Chapter Two

Silver Maiden

By CSKitten

Disclaimer: I do not own Inu Yasha or its characters; the ideas belong to Rumiko Takahashi, Inu Yasha's creator. I do, on the other hand, own this story and plot.

Chapter Two

Standing before her friends was daunting to say the least.

The tension in the air was thick and heady. Its scent wafted into her nostrils and made her insides coil and twist. Absentmindedly, the neko wondered if tension even had a scent but chose to file that question away for later.

Right now she had a job to do; she had to make amends.

She knew it would be hard but knowing didn't prepare her for the shocked faces of her friends, her family. "Knowing" did not save her from the instincts that told her to run for her life. Her superficial knowing didn't stop her heart from clenching in sympathy at the sound of her name; a broken whisper between parched lips.

Slowly the Ningen's faces mirrored that of the shocked Hanyou. Realization shined in their eyes as they took wary steps back. They were likely fighting their own instincts too.

Her teeth clamped over her tongue in the hopes that minor pain would stop the tears.

Swallowing thickly, she managed a tentative smile as she glanced at the group before her. Her eyes conveniently avoiding the piercing golden eyes belonging to the silver haired male; too afraid to see what emotions were there and even more afraid of the emotions that were likely hidden. Swallowing down her fear and stealing her own frantic nerves, she finally stared into the eyes of her caller.

"Hello…, Inu Yasha. I… I told you I'd be back, ne?"

The words were pathetic, she knew, but enough to alight a spark within everyone's eyes. As if the whole scene was in fast forward, there was an intense flurry of movement due to that fire. Minutes felt like seconds, as a hanyou roared.

A houshi hung his head in resignation.

A Taiji fell to her knees broken.

And a Taiyoukai shielded the cowering frame of one silver eyed maiden.

His blood boiled with such heat that not even the depth of hell could compare. He wanted to scream. He wanted to fight. He wanted to rip that bitch to shreds! He wanted to tear the throat right out of the neko sitting ten feet away from him, under the oddly watchful gaze of his arrogant tanechigai.

The older demon's actions did not make sense to him, though nothing made sense to him in light of things. Why would the bastard with a block of ice for a heart save a woman he himself had tried to kill in the past? To top it off the ningen now turned aki, was a neko of all things! An Inu's supposedly sworn enemy yet the icy lord still protected her. It was a troubling question on the Hanyou's already taxed mind.

His attention once again settled on the neko onna, the fire in his eyes growing stronger rather than diminishing. The blasted cunt was a pureblooded youkai, without even the slightest evidence that but a day ago, she was a weak, fragile ningen! The sheer, awesome power that coursed through that pale body was enough to make the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

"_That power should be mine."_

His thoughts darkened as images of her death danced through his head. Sadly, he could not act upon his twisted fantasies, not with a statue that weighed two tons on his back, coupled with paralysis sutras, and an annoyingly protective youkai in his way. His body rendered immobile with the exception of his mouth and eyes. It would have to do though if he wanted any answers to the questions buzzing in his head like an angry batch of Saimyoushou.

He glared heated daggers at the onna, silently wishing those daggers were real, as he asked in a gravelly voice, "How… In the fucking hell… did this happen?"

There. He said it. He asked the question that everyone was too afraid to ask. Now he just needed the answer to the million yen question.

He watched her look down at the folded hands on her lap, worrying those plump lips of hers. After what seemed like hours, she lifted her head to stare back at him. Luminescent silver met fiery amber.

Her red lips moved, and he'd be a fool to admit that his focus was so set on her tantalizing features that he didn't register it as quickly as he should have.

"It's complicated…"

Sadly, for her, it did register after a while but before he could open his mouth again the Houshi beside him slapped a sutra over his mouth. His eyes swiveled to the side to glare at the man beside him, his anger temporarily replaced. '_I'll get you for this, Miroku…"_

"Please…" the houshi began, "Try to explain as easily as you can, Kagome-Sama."

'_If that is your real name…'_ the hanyou thought, too stubborn to admit just how childish that sounded even to his own mind.

His eyes moved back to the girl in question. Once again he was transfixed by the move of her lips as she sighed and whispered softly into the night wind.

"Let me… Let me start from the beginning."

With another sigh, Kagome picked up her sleeping kitsune son and placed him gently upon her lap. She stroked his head gently as the nervous doubt, that was already coiling within her core, moved to wrap around her heart tightly. Her breath became slightly labored as she felt the curious eyes of her comrades on her body.

Swallowing thickly, she dampened her lips then began her tale in a slow, calm voice that was stronger than she felt.

"_Long ago, when the world was much younger, kingdoms were filling the lands. Both youkai and ningen began spreading their seeds and creating their own royalty. Both races strived to make a place for themselves._

"_The ningen's goal was much more difficult to meet though, thanks to the savage actions of the more wild and unkempt youkai. Countless deaths occurred to the point of desperation for the weaker ningens. All hope for their survival seemed dim._

"_The more spiritually knowledgeable prayed and begged any Amatsu-Kami that would listen to their plea, to bless them with the ability to fight back and save their lives. Intrigued by the mortals Juichimen, the Kami of mercy, granted their plea by filling select men and women with his powers. Those people thus became known as Shukke and Miko._

"_The powers of these select few were enough to protect the villages and soon the castles that were built. With a spiritual protector within their race the ningen's flourished, while the protectors took the lives of any Youkai they saw. Some said it was just revenge._

"_Now fearing for their own existence, the Youkai Lords began to place bounties on the heads of those spiritual beings. The more powerful and greedy Youkai jumped at the chance to prove their worth and gain fame and riches in the process. So the war between Youkai and ningen started anew._

"_One of the warriors was a panther prince named Masashi. His clan ruled the Northern Lands and was blessed by Ama-No-Minaka-Nushi with his powers and his sign. A fact he took great pride in demonstrating by going on weekly hunts for the spiritual mortals._

"_On a day that was simply meant as a time of relaxation, for the man that had just slaughtered sixty ningen prior, Masashi went on one of his few leisurely patrols through his future kingdom. Not truly expecting anything out of the ordinary, he was pleasantly surprised when he came upon a lone woman standing within a snow covered meadow._

"_With a single glance he knew instantly that not only was she ningen but also a Miko with a powerful aura, more powerful than most youkai he knew! The thing that shocked him most, though, was that she held herself like a trained warrior. Even wore the armor of a skilled assassin._

"_The woman looked up to stare at the youkai and as Masashi stared into her mahogany eyes he knew she'd unknowingly signed her death wish. The demon inside of him craved for her blood, to stain the white snow beneath them. Who was he not to agree to his baser desires?_

"_He stalked towards her, a smirk marring, yet also enhancing, his handsome face. Though, much to the woman's pleasure and curiosity, his smirk fell into shock as he got closer. It would seem he did not expect her to be of such great beauty._

"_He should have destroyed her on the spot, right where she stood. She was so close after all. Perhaps take her to the palace dungeon and work her for information through any torture necessary._

"_Anything would work really. As long as it ended in the small powerhouse's demise. Try as he may though, his feet wouldn't budge and his youkai refused to come to call._

"_The Miko seemed to be in a similar battle with her own body. Youkai, like the man before her, were blood thirsty monsters that slaughtered her people on a daily basis. So why couldn't she urge her body into striking against the tall male and getting some sort of small revenge?_

"_Feeling threatened and helpless, both flared out their powerful auras towards the other, in a show of strength. Though what was supposed to be a clashing death threat was more like a caress against the one another's souls. Their powers seemed to embrace one another as if they were long lost lovers instead of feuding enemies._

"_Neither trusting nor misbelieving their own auras, which in essence were the heart of their souls, the two stepped closer till they were an arms width apart. With every step their auras seemed to meld until their combined powers felt almost suffocating yet heavenly at the same time. The prospect excited them both more than they'd care to admit._

"'_Who are you youkai?' the onna questioned, breaking the silence. 'And what spell have you cast upon my eyes and mind?' Her eyes of such a lovely, mysteriously rich brown burned into his with an intense fire that he'd rarely seen on ningen or youkai alike. He was willing to bet at that moment, that her inner fire could burn hell itself._

"_It was more than simply 'easy' for him to admit that he enjoyed that fire, even as he let out a deep baritone laugh of sarcastic mirth. An aggravating sound that made the woman huff even as her skin bumped with prickles of pleasure._

"'_You accuse me of spell binding when so obviously you yourself have done that to me!' the neko bellowed.' What trickery do you play at onna? Can you not see? Can you not comprehend that I hold no need for such sorcery? I am Masashi, Prince of the Northern Lands, member of the Ginkoori clan, and soon… I'll claim the title of being your killer.'_

"_He smirked at her charmingly as he gripped her chin. 'Now tell me, my pretty sparrow, what is your name? I'd very much like to know the name of my prey. It is so much nicer to boast the slaying of a powerful Miko, as yourself, when I can tack the name of such onna onto the story. It makes her pitiful demise, nay existence, even more pleasurable of a tale._

"_The onna replied with a powerful flare of her aura, knocking the obnoxious youkai back a good twenty yards. The Miko smirked, self-satisfied as the youkai sat up from his impromptu fall in the snow. Her smirk didn't last long when she had to quickly draw up a barrier and her sword to fend off the powerful attack sent her way._

"_The battle had begun but it was not purely physical for either combatant. There was another more internal battle waged within their own bodies. Be that as it may, neither warrior planned to lose, to the other or themselves._

"_Their battles were both vicious in their own rights. Claws tore at flesh. Swords clashed together spreading sparks. Demonic skin was burned by holy powers unlike anything seen before._

"_It went on for hours. With neither giving up and yet neither of them using their full power. Arrogance, I suppose, told them that they did not need to._

"_Even stranger than their restraints on powers was the conversation that began between the two. It was interestingly pleasant as they yelled over the clash of their battle. Certainly, it was an amazing feat._

"_The two learned much about the other. Copious amounts of information stored within their heads. Even the occasional laugh was shared when there wasn't blood in their mouths._

"_However, as the battle went into its fourth hour, the Miko, that had still not conveyed her name, began to slow down. Her reserves were running low. After all, she was still only a ningen._

"_The Panther prince saw the signs of her fatigue and thought it high time to end their proverbial cat and mouse game. He waited, like the patient hunter he was, for an opening in the Miko's defense. His patience was rewarded as his blood lust came to full fruition._

"_His clawed hand slashed out and grabbed the young onna by the wrist and pulled her close against her chest, as if she was his sole lover. Her gasp of pain ruined the seemingly romantic moment. Her life's essence began to stain the snow beneath them crimson._

"_His bloody hand stuck out from her back, inches from her spine._

"_Cradling her head gently, Masashi watched the streams of blood slide from her mouth and down her long, pale neck. His face was emotionless and impassive as he watched the grey pools of her eyes dim. The heat of her body coated his lethally clawed hand._

"'_You are too fair to be in such a state, onna', was his gentle whisper. 'So the choice is yours. Become my mate and live with honor, respect and power less you die and go to hell this instant. Knowing that you died at the hands of a prince that had somehow come to enjoy your company and spark._

"'_Both choices are irrevocably permanent and can either allow your happiness or your shame.'_

"_The dying woman simply gurgled as her lungs tried to capture air around the liquid in her vocals. Aside from that she was silent and limp till there was barely life within her. Her heart beat started to slow and sluggish._

"_He feared her choice had been made and that thought brought great sadness to his eyes. Then he felt it. The tiniest of caresses against his own power by the onna's diminishing aura._

"_Her final choice had been made._

"_Not willing to waist anymore time, the demon moved aside her armor and thick winter garb and proceeded to ravish her where they stood. The exchange of blood that went with mating was a quick, urgent affair but was completed with the seal of a mark upon her neck and his chest. The newly mated neko roared in victory of the conquest of his prey._

"_That stubborn Miko became the future North no Lady that night. Not unwillingly like many came to believe later on. No, she wanted the dashing youkai with the shinning silver eyes just as much as he seemed to want her. While some came to ridicule the youkai for following the teachings of selfish greed, she understood. _

"_After all, who could be judgmental towards someone who made his affection, though harsh, so blatantly obvious before her?_

"_Once her fatal wounds had healed, thanks to the blood of her demonic lover, the newly formed couple separated paths. He went to his castle to work out a place for her. She returned to her village to wait for his call._

"_True, their souls were more than ready to proclaim of their new found love, but society had to be considered for such delicate circumstances. The times were too dark and mistrusting for a prince and an immortal Miko to step out onto the scene as a couple. Wisdom and cunning was their friend, as they worked to maintain their secret till they could finally show it to the world._

"_Masashi spent years working alongside his father to end the war between youkai and ningen. Many questions and rumors were spread throughout the palace as to why the one that had previously supported the war was now fighting against it. Wisely, they kept their mouths shut when confronted._

"_Fifty years had passed after that fateful mating. The war was finally over, but at the cost of the Great Lord of the North's life._

"_As the sole and rightful heir, Masashi took the throne with a heavy heart._

"_Word of his power and wisdom was spread across the four kingdoms but rumor of an unknown, mystery mate spread faster and more abundantly. Some said she was a hime from overseas. Others said she was once one of the servants of the palace._

"_Obviously, they were all entirely wrong. Considering that she wasn't even youkai, let alone a hime. So you could just imagine their shock when the announcement was made that the handsome ruler not only had a mate already, but that she was a Miko._

"_Emotions such as anger, jealousy, and disgust spread like a wild fire across the four kingdoms. It was a dangerous situation for Masashi and his mate, one that required them to constantly be at their best in order to prove themselves to their fellow rulers. Sadly, their work ethic did not phase most. The East and South quickly disbanded their ties with the North and, subsequently, with the West as well. When they discovered the Lord of the West, Inumaru, was a supporter of his dear neko friend the thought to abandon the once ally was quick and unanimous. _

"_Undeterred, Masashi and Inumaru worked together on enforcing their rule and became well known in history for their power and benevolence._

"_While it was a difficult effort on the part of both Lords, no one can deny that the Northern Lady had, by far, the hardest trials. Not only did she have the constant ridicule from the youkai himes of the surrounding villages and lands but the hatred of her own people that viewed her as simple whore. After only twenty years of ruling with her mate the stress seemed to weigh too heavy on her soul._

"_Her first known suicide attempt was committed on the anniversary of her rule with her mate._

"_Feeling no sympathy for the woman, the rumors poured out even more freely. Disgusted whispers penetrated her mind as she lay in her chamber to heal, reminders of her biggest failure yet. Her inability to produce a child became the cause of laughter from many a youkai._

"_Many years were spent in the lonesome of her rooms, for the Lady of the North. Her companions only her dutiful mate and a single maid that was too naïve to care about her humanity. It took a long time for her to come back but it was worth it to see the renewed fire in her deep, expressive eyes. She took her rightful place beside her mate and proved to herself and other's that she deserved it within five years. The pride within Lord Masashi's eyes was almost tangible._

"_Peace finally blanketed the North in its comforting embrace and soon the Lady was found pregnant. The inhabitants of both the North and the West rejoiced in the pleasure of knowing they would soon have a new heir to the throne. The same youkai that ridiculed them for over half a century finally held respect for the rulers of the Northern plane._

"_Five months after the announcement of the new coming heir, the healthy cries of the new born babe were heard. The cheers of the North and West echoed throughout for days. No one knew that the joy would only last so long._

"_It would seem that the Okami of the East and Naga of the South joined as an alliance in an effort to tear down Masashi and his kingdom. Their anger towards the taboo mating made them blind with the need to set an example. So three weeks after the Northern heir's birth, the palace was attacked._

"_The battle raged on as Masashi held off the attackers from his precious family as long as he could. The ground at his feet was becoming drenched with blood, making him slip as he continued to strike with his sword. The blows to his body went ignored. Why would he care as long as his family survived? He knew he'd die but if they could live it would be worth it._

"_Pain filled gasps spread through the battle field as a blinding white light engulfed it. As the light died down it the Northern Lady stood proud beside her mate. The sleeping child was held safe within her arms._

"_With a barrier protecting them, the Miko pushed the small child into her mate's arms. The on lookers left alive remember how beautiful her smile was. They also remember the chills down their spines when she whispered her last word to her mate._

"'_Run'_

"_No further incentive was needed as the Lord disappeared into thin air. His body zipped past trees and other obstacles in his earnest to save their child. He ran for days till he reached the heart of the Western planes._

"_He found a small clearing with a pathetic excuse for a well in the center. With a delicate sniff he discovered it's bottom to be empty and jumped. His focus was intent on laying his bundle within the hole, before casting a protection spell over the well's mouth._

"_It would seem his plan was in vain though, as a bright blue light surrounded and thrust them into a new land. He found a sweet young ningen there, dressed in the garb of a proper Miko. Masashi recognized the woman's caring nature and spoke his plight, begging her to care for the small bundle in his arms._

"_Shell shocked and confused, she agreed promptly as the light package was place in her arms. With one last request from the strange Youkai, the two beings chanted together over the small bundle. Together their words suppressed the babe's demonic half so that she'd remain safe and unrecognized till it was time for it to return to its place of birth._

"_Once the deed was done Masashi quickly left from where he came and used the last of his strength to rush to his mate's side. It would seem that the effort was wasted though. Upon reaching the bloody clearing he found his sweet Miko encased in stone within the mouth of one of the numerous Youkai coiled around her._

"_His howl of morning shook the very heart of his lands to the core. The anguish tangible as those of the North looked on at their rulers. Praised the woman that one the war at the cost of her own life._

"_Inumaru rushed to his friend's side to give comfort, but was too late. He watched with a clenched heart as Masashi screamed._

"'_They're gone! I shall never see their sweet faces again! My strength could not save them in time! So tell me you gluttonous savages! Has their lives stated your blood lust and hatred? Was their blood not enough to quench your thirst! Might I add some more, you cursed fools?'_

"_With sword in hand, the Lord of the North kissed the stony lips of his Lady, before impaling his own broken heart."_

The melancholy silence hung around the group as their eyes remained downcast in thought. Miroku stared at the frightfully beautiful youkai before him. It was obvious that even for the Hanyou beside him it was difficult to break the silence and stop her beautiful voice's resonance in the air.

"What does that have to do with… Your new f-form… Kagome?" Sango asked for the rest of them. Miroku bit back the urge to scowl.

The young demoness' red stained lips opened and her voice soothed the swirling within Miroku's hazard mind. If not for his love for the Taiji next to him… Loyalty in love would be lost. "Well it's simple really." She began, "I-"

"Human wouldn't you rather talk to the Miko herself?" Sesshoumaru interrupted with his normal air of superiority. Eyes swiveled over towards the tall Lord in confusion. "Well we were talking to her before you interrupted, icicle dick." Inu Yasha grumbled, "So why don't you shut up your shit eating mouth and let her finish."

The fire light reflected on the sword pressed against the Inu's throat with a taunting cheerfulness. Miroku gripped his staff as Sesshoumaru looked down his nose in disgust and glared with a long cultivated hatred in his hard eyes. "Perhaps you should shut your mouth whelp and use your eyes. Do you not see the difference in the Miko?"

Said Miko's silence and worrying of her hands did not go unnoticed by the houshi.

"Of course I see the difference! She has a freaking tail sticking out of her ass! Or did you just now notice? Maybe when you go to the healer to get that log out of your ass you can have him check out your eyes." Was his brilliant reply.

The sword pressed closer, enough to draw out a few drops of blood that blended well with the fire rat top but attention wasn't on the compromised male this time. Instead eyes stared hard at the small woman who let out a resigned sigh "This woman's speech is too calm and out of character from her normal quips and brashness." The Lord spoke with the smooth disdain that was easy for him to accomplish, "So tell me Onna… What have you done to the Miko turned Youkai?"

After placing the now awake Kitsune on her sleeping bag, Kagome stood up just as a loud pop sounded in the area and her hand flew to her neck. "I told you this wouldn't work…" Her voice seemed to hold more sweet innocence than before. Why hadn't they noticed how solemn and slightly gravelly it was before? She placed her hand out and everyone, except the shouting Hanyou and his stoic tanechigai, leaned in to stare at the blushing flea with long white hair.

"Sh-Shoga-Sama!" Miroku gasped as the small flea let out a falsetto giggle.

"Oh ho ho ho! Hello there everyone! Haven't I gotten so much better at controlling people? Quite a talent wouldn't you say? OH! Did you enjoy my story! Oh ho ho! Can you believe it's all true? Oh Masashi-Sama was such an attractive man! I was still young then too! I was the most beautiful youkai around in those days. I was called Shoga-hime and everything! Oh ho ho h-ACH!" The blabber was quickly silenced as Kagome let out a sheepish giggle and hid her hands behind her back. "Eh… Just ignore her… Eh heh heh?"

An awkward silence stretched on as the Kagome they knew showed herself through the demonic skin. "So um… What was your question, Sesshoumaru-Sama?" Her voice was loud enough to make even her wince as the ruler scowled.

"This Sesshoumaru does not repeat himself. You know what I said, Neko no Onna."

Red lips pouted as she looked away and squirmed. "We-well um… That baby was me, the Lord of the North Masashi-Sama was my father and Midoriko was my mum, I'm a panther, aaannnddd I came back to my father's time to find my betrothed. SO! Who wants ramen?"

'_Oh great… I think I hear a cricket in the background…'_

I let out a nervous giggle that grated on my ears as I went through my big yellow bag looking for the styrofoam cups of ramen. I felt their stares on my back and had to stop myself from running away as I slid out a scroll also.

"Do you honestly think they'll let it drop for their stomachs, Kagome-Sama?" was the condescending whisper in my ear. "Well Inu Yasha would…" I whispered back, wincing when said male yelled out his profanities and denial. Walking back over to my sleeping bag, I sat down with the old scroll cradled against my breast. "Okay sit down… Give me some air…"

Seeing everyone seated I took a deep breath and wrung my hands together. They didn't seem to angry now but that could just be from the shock. _'I wish Inu Yasha would stop looking at me like that though… It's like he's jealous or something. __**He is. **__Of what? __**Of me. Of us. Of our blood. **__You mean…? __**Exactly, we are everything he's ever wanted. We are full youkai with status and respect brought on by our power alone. **__So does that me-'_

"Are you going to tell us what the hell you mean by 'Midoriko is my mommy and I'm a full blooded youkai!' shit any time soon, **Yariman-Hime?" Inu Yasha griped, using a false falsetto voice at the end. I had to bite back the hiss that was itching my throat but I couldn't stop my tail from bushing out till it looked like those black furry caterpillars from earlier. I let a small shudder take over my form as I grimaced from the memory, then cleared my throat as loud as I could.**

"**Midoriko-Sama really was my mother, that's how that legendary battle between her and those many Youkai started. Because of my birth and my mother's humanity the North was attacked and she was killed." I know my voice sounded bland and monotone but I just couldn't help it. She was my biological mother, yes, but as far as I'm concerned my real mother is Shizuko Higurashi. Always has been and always will be.**

**Miroku got an odd, scrunched up look on his face as he spoke, "Midoriko-Sama? But she is the one that created the Shikon No Tama. So what happened to the jewel? Why was it even created?"**

'_Quite the curious male… __**He always has been. Haven't you noticed that?**__ I've been locked up for almost a full eighteen years within the farthest corner of your mind. No, I didn't have a chance to notice. __**Touchy…"**_

**Crap. Haven't answered yet and they're all starring. "Ahem. After my father committed suicide, Inumaru-Sama went to my parent's bodies and discovered the jewel encased within Midoriko-Sama's hands. The thought was that it was her desire to show that human's and youkai could exist together still be powerful, hence the large amount of power the owner of the jewel receives. Inumaru-Sama also theorized that she wanted to leave behind a part of her soul for her mate and daughter."**

Miroku nodded slowly, the understanding and confusion dancing in his eyes. He opened his mouth but it wasn't his voice that spoke.

"Before you bore this Sesshoumaru with more of your incessant babble, Youkai no Miko, you will explain why my presence is needed here."

I could feel the glare of those deep gold eyes pound into my back like icy hailstones. I could imagine how his long silver hair would blow in the breeze, giving him the look of an otherworldly being even as his hand gleam green from his poison.

Tentatively, I gave him a weak smile then turned to the scroll in my hands. I know they shook as I unrolled the old text but chose to act oblivious. Shoga jumped down from my shoulder to sit on the insignia of the North that was drawn expertly on the old parchment next to the insignia of the West. Her small legs and arms crossed as she looked over the small group solemnly.

"I think I can answer that Sesshoumaru-Sama…" The female flea's voice seemed much too large for her small body as it resonated through the clearing.

"Like I said before, when Masashi-Sama found himself in the future he met the Ningen known as Shizuko. Her sweet demeanor warmed the Northern ruler's heart and so he urged her to protect his only child, Kagome. She accepted even though it was obvious the child was half youkai. After she agreed, Masashi-Sama promised to return quickly only to fall to his knees in pain. As he clutched at his heart he knew that his mate was going to die. So before he left he entrusted the Shizuko-San with one more task. Together they chanted over Kagome with an ancient tongue I don't even know. The spell was made to suppress her Youkai blood till her eighteenth birthday arrived. In which case, the demonic blood rushed to the surface and devoured the Ningen blood within her, leaving Kagome as a full blood.

"Masashi-Sama failed to tell Shizuko-San the extent of the spell though. You see, dear Kagome was betrothed at birth and to ensure that she married the male chosen for her Masashi-Sama saw fit to add a transportation spell to the mix. On the day that Kagome's attended reaches full growth as a Youkai male she'd be transported to his time when she reaches fifteen, using the old dilapidated well's power as a mediator."

Shoga gestured to the scroll she sat atop of. "This scroll was left for Kagome in Shizuko's care as proof of the engagement between the House of the North Star and House of the Crescent Moon. Kagome, oldest daughter of the late Masashi-Sama and Midoriko-Sama, is the intended mate to Inumaru-Sama and Kiyomi-Sama's eldest son." The old flee smirked as she turned to look at the stoic Youkai she spoke of but he wasn't there.

Neither was Kagome.

CSKitten: Comments are appreciated!


	4. Chapter Three

Silver Maiden

By CSKitten

Disclaimer: I do not own Inu Yasha or its characters; the ideas belong to Rumiko Takahashi, Inu Yasha's creator. I do, on the other hand, own this story and plot.

**!WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS GRAPHIC GORE AND YUCK THAT IS NOT SUITABLE FOR SMALL CHILDREN AND PEOPLE WITH A WEAK STOMACH!**

Thank you my readers for taking such an interest in this story and I do hope to post again soon.

And apologies abound to Sugar0o for putting you through that. Please forgive me I really thought I'd put a warning up. ;-;

Chapter Three

Drip.

Clunk.

Drip

Clunk.

Drip.

'_Ugh… Make it stop… __**I can't rightly do that.**__'_

Drip.

Clunk.

Drip.

'_And why not? It's so bothersome… I just want to sleep… __**We're bound. Besides… You wouldn't be able to stop it anyway.**__'_

Drip.

Clunk.

Drip drip.

Plop.

'_W-why wouldn't I be able to stop it? __**Open your eyes and find out.**__'_

Black lashes fluttered as pale blue stained lids opened to reveal shimmering silver eyes. Silver met muted brown as she stared at his face. In the distant corners of her mind she realized how handsome this male was. He was an ohitsuji if the spiral horns on either side of his head were of any indication. Not that it truly mattered; what with his handsome head lying on a suspended platter three feet away from her face.

Her heart began to race as the dripping seemed to pulse in her ears. She tore her eyes away from the unblinking, accusing stare, to behold the cause of the dripping. The man's body, suspended at the ankles by thick ropes, was hovering a few feet above and away from its decapitated head. The blood droplets left to fall on a long, narrow sheet of rusted red metal so that it could run down in a grotesque pattern, land on the once white hair of the severed head and then finally fall to the ground to join the ever growing pool.

Large neko ears flew back as her breath came out in shallow hisses. She tried to move her head but it would seem that she was in a similar state as the decaying corpse in front of her. There was a strap across her chin and forehead that kept her facing forward. Her arms tied and pulled behind her back and her spread legs dangled above the stained ground.

'_Why, in the name of all that is good and holy, did you tell me to open my eyes, Kemono-san! __**I was curious, Kokoro, simply curious.**__'_

She tried to look away; she really did. But her eyes couldn't stop staring into those of the deceased male that the flickering torch lights gave the sick impression of life still being behind those dulled orbs. Something told her that his death was somehow her fault, and that thought alone made her shiver.

When she shivered a second time she realized just how cold she was. Too cold, like when you wake up one winter morning and realize that you kicked off the covers and were bare to the wo_- 'Oh God no…!'_ Struggling, she looked down just long enough to see her nearly nude body.

Breathing just became a lot harder.

"O-okay, Kagome… Get a grip on yourself. Assess the situation. Yeah… Think about this logically." Was it sad that her rambling voice brought a sense of comfort? "S-so I'm in a dungeon, I'm tied up like in some hardcore porno in only my panties, there is a dead corpse suspended in front of me, and I don't know what's going to happen to me but it'll probably result in death."

An insane giggle erupted from her lips as her eyes flew around wildly. "Yeah! That helped so much! Hahaha!" Tears of laughter turned into tears of hysteria. "OH KAMI-SAMA I'M GONNA DIE! SOMEBODY HELP ME!" Screaming became a welcome option to her mind as she thrashed and howled in desperation.

"Sesshoumaru-Sama… Are you sure you want to do it this way? It seems a bit ostentatious. If things go wrong, I'm afraid you'll lose your chance forever."

Orbs made of pure gold glanced at the tall Hakuchoo within his study's doorway. He opted to ignore the statements sent his way in lieu of studying his advisor and only trusted friend. It truly must be an honor to say that your friend was once the legendary "Imperial Death". The emperor, from across the sea, gave the assassin as a gift to the House of the Crescent centuries ago.

When the male boarded the docks off to the west he was quickly issued the job of being his protector and, for lack of a better word, his caretaker. The relationship was certainly a bother for both parties involved. Until that, oh so fateful, day…

The assassin took his normal seat to the right of his lord, the stripes that marred his left cheek in full view. It came to mind, that funny day when he learned of his power. When his still adolescent body tackled the "despicable bird" and claws connected with cheek. Poison connected to flesh. Flesh melted away as the blood burst out in sporadic spurts, drenching his small body.

The assassin just laughed.

Even as he was rushed to the healers, he laughed. When they cut away burned flesh and part of his eye, he nearly giggled. "Finally, he's ready." were the only words he spoke as they bandaged his face that now held four bloody and melted scars. After he was released from the care of the healers, the assassin, now as a caretaker, took on the task of training the young Inu heir in all the dark arts and skills he knew.

The prodigy child and the scarred assassin.

Sesshoumaru smirked at the scarred man beside him, "Tell me, Hong. Why would it be so terrible if I simply utilize the rights given me?" The Hakuchoo bowed his head then smirked back at his Lord. "Ah… My dear friend, you are so right. Shall I be of assistance?"

The Lord all but grinned as he stared into amused black eyes, "Watch and observe. I should like your input after my fun." The bird bowed low then stood with a grace that could only belong to his kind. "So be it, Sesshoumaru-san." His deep bass voice held more amusement than his eyes as he winked conspiratorially at the Taiyoukai, before walking away in a sweep of robes. As the door closed behind him a request flittered past his feathered ears: "I'll need a hand, Hong"

"As you wish…"

She squirmed at first, then whimpered for what felt like hours. Her arms and ankles were raw and her throat was hoarse. The deepest hollows of her mind knew that the screaming was useless, entirely useless, but that didn't stop her.

"PLEASE! I NEED TO GET OUT! I DON'T BELONG HERE! I HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING WRONG, I SWEAR! I'LL DO ANY-"

"Shut up, onna!"

Blood shot silver eyes, that she didn't even remember closing, shot open and stared at the previously once dead corpse. "Oh Kami you're alive?" The answering scoff and squawk succeeded in making her feel inferior. "That baka has been dead for an hour now. The only way he'd be talking is if my Lord had revived him with his sword. Something I doubt would ever happen."

She had to strain her eyes to look to the left and see the green kappa that sat in a small corner of the room, atop her kimono! Sanity temporarily forgotten, in lieu of violent anger, she screamed her indignation, "YOU! GET OFF MY CLOTHES AND UNTIE ME NOW, JAKEN!"

The kappa cackled as he wiggled and smudged his green ass against the fine silk. "You can't order me around, onna, so I suggest you get comfortable. I'm sure you'll get down eventually." She breathed a sigh of relief. "When they pull down your corpse and throw it into the incinerator!" The cackling came back full force.

Jaken's long, beak of a mouth opened again, no doubt ready to spew more slanderous comments to the shaking maiden, but a white orb flew into the back of his throat and quickly stopped any possible speech. The maiden watched the kappa choke and scream with a morbid pleasure, his already bulging yellow eyes looking like they were going to burst. She found herself truly enjoying his suffering. That is, until she saw the orb fly out of his esophagus and land on the platform next to the handsome Youkai's crimson drenched head. It was a bloody eye with sapphire irises. That's when she realized that the screams weren't coming from the kappa but, more specifically, from behind her.

"Oh Kami-Sama…"

"Actually, this Sesshoumaru is no Kami and while I'm flattered that you think of me as such I had thought a Miko, especially a Miko of Youkai origin, would know the difference." was the smooth baritone reply that brought shivers down her spine. It appeared that her fate had been sealed.

"What's going on here, Sesshoumaru? Let me down this instant!" She had a long rant ready but was stopped by the leather gag placed securely in her mouth. Her growl shocked even herself as she tried to bite through the coarse material.

The screams became dull whimpers as two sets of feet came around to stand in front of her. One belonged to the tall Taiyoukai, the other to a shackled woman with blood seeping down the right side of her face. Acting as if the bleeding woman beside him wasn't there, Sesshoumaru stared critically at the woman from the tips of her toes, to the black and red boy shorts, the tips of her heaving breasts, and finally her flushed face.

"Eighty-nine correct?"

The maiden stopped her icy glare in exchange for one of curiosity and confusion, one large ear turning to the side and back as her tail swished beside her in testy arcs. Seeing the look for what it was, the male clarified, "You're eighty-nine in the time line of your youkai heritage correct, Kurohyou?" The confusion deepened as her mind worked through not only the question but the math and, after a slight hesitation on her part, she nodded slowly.

The smile he gave her was like a stab of pure fear into her heart.

"Good. Then you will, of course, forgive this Sesshoumaru for missing the years you survived through. It is considered an insult in our society not to celebrate the growth of one's…" again his eyes roamed over her body, disgust showing not only in his shining golden orbs but in his tone of voice, as he bit out with malice, "'Intended'."

The emotion melted off his face and away from his eyes as he turned to the still quivering woman beside him. "So in my repentance… I'll give you all of your gifts tonight, all eighty-nine of them." He gestured with an elegant hand towards the suspended and decapitated corpse. "That was the first gift." Then he gripped the woman and pressed her face against Kagome's, both women screamed, sharing one another's breath. "This is the second."

The woman with the once beautiful sapphire eyes gave a gurgled gasp before, to Kagome's horror, her head slid to the side before falling onto the ground below. A spurt of blood gushed up to splatter on the maiden's face, before the body crumpled on top of its head. The maiden now stared into the hard gold eyes of her captor, as she started to scream around the gag.

This would be a long night.

The silver haired Shihaisha nodded at someone behind her, and she heard footsteps once again. Two guards walked in wearing, what appeared to be, simple Noh masks, one in red and one in blue. The red one picked up the bleeding body of the woman and put her in her own section of the large room. The blue one removed the dangling corpse of the ohitsuji and also placed him in his own section of the room.

'_Is that it maybe…?'_, her inner voice seemed to crack as dread sunk in. _'__**I doubt it. It would seem to me, that there are eighty seven more gifts, waiting for us.**__'_

And so there were. The next "gift" that was brought out was a human with greasy hair and a sickly black mouth. He leered at Kagome as he was strapped to a long board. He screamed for Sesshoumaru as the lord sliced limb from joint.

The neko squeezed her eyes shut and her ears went mute, as the man's fingertips were being expertly cut off one at a time. The smell of blood was heavy in her nose, until suddenly she smelled pine and freshly fallen snow. She opened one eye, followed by the other, allowing her to gaze upon the sadistic beauty that was and is the Shihaisha of the West. Their lips brushed against one another while he whispered to her, as if they were already lovers sharing sweet secrets, "If you close your eyes, dear and pitiful Miko, I'll make sure that the rest of your gifts live for days in agony with your pretty little ears listening to their screams. On the other hand, if you watch… Gaze upon their demise, they'll all die before sunrise."

She gulped, seeing the fiery promise behind his gaze. Sharp teeth gnawed on the leather gag as she went through her options_. '__**Either way they're going to die, Kokoro. Why not simply watch and enjoy the show? Learn.**__ That's sick! Besides, what good would it do me to learn how to… if… if I die afterwards? __**Fine, then simply enjoy. Or is my little Kokoro more sadistic than I thought perhaps? Do you wish to listen to their screams for days on end?**__ No… I don't want someone to die because of me! __**Like I said, they'll die either way.**__ I know, Kemono-San… I know.'_

She said nothing, for obvious reasons, but gave the barest of nods instead, which was returned by the silver haired Inu. So, she watched as the now whimpering male's screaming began anew. His fingertips had already been removed, next came the rest of the digit, then the wrist, then the elbow was cut off, followed by a chop at the shoulder, and so on. Sesshoumaru's cuts were clean through bone and sinew till the man was without arms and legs. The man's begging was finally put to an end with a slice at the head, cutting it in half from ear to ear.

She didn't know why but after the eighth "gift", an apple red woman that was impaled through her ass till the long bamboo rod jutted from her open mouth, she started referring to them by number. Number twelve, a Suzume, had its wings torn off and the feathers were used to start a fire that burned him alive. Seventeen had his intestines and bladder cut out and, with his last moments of life, watched as they were used to strangle and gag his mother, eighteen. The poor boy looked to be a little over eight years old.

After every murder committed by the arrogant Inu, the red guard would move the mutilated body into one of three growing sections. The blue guard would bring out the next gift and prepare them for whatever death they were destined to receive.

Some gifts were given a choice as to how they want to die, like twenty-nine and thirty-eight.

Twenty-nine was suspended by the wrists to a metal bar, over a bubbling tub of Sesshoumaru's collected poison; metal balls tied to every toe, ankle, knee, and to his waist. The choices were simple and blatant: Either he sliced the thick ropes holding him with his claws and melt within the poison below, or let the enchanted balls grow heavier and heavier until they ripped off toes, feet, legs and so on until he bled to death into the poison. The poor man didn't get a real chance to choose though, not with his lower half already mixing with the acidic poison before he could scream correctly.

Thirty-eight would give the Maiden nightmares for weeks. The woman was an Ookami. _'Maybe she's related to Kouga? Her eyes were just like his…'_ Sesshoumaru, the sadistic man he appeared to be, was almost gentle as he sliced her chest open and pulled out her heart just enough that it still beat as he placed the organ into the Ookami's mouth. She was then strapped down onto a table, her head hanging over the edge, beating heart in her mouth, and sharp tipped potted bamboo pointed right at that same beating heart. Again, the choices were simple, end it all and bite her own heart or she could wait for the bamboo to grow just enough to puncture the throbbing mass.

'_I can't believe she…she bit DOWN! Ate her…her heart! __**I wonder how it tasted…**__'_

As if to give the killings more depth into her brain and on her senses, the Taiyoukai of the West found it prudent to cover her with a splash of every gift's blood. Some amounts more copious that others. Sometimes, he'd go so far as to remove the gag and force feed a bit of the gift's flesh down her throat. At first the actions themselves scared and disgusted her but after she willingly bit into and swallowed the fatty muscle of a Buta's freshly charred hide she realized who was, or was becoming, the real monster.

Her blood lust had finally set in, and now she looked forward to every new gift. She watched hungrily as the newborn koushi was sliced up into tiny bits and placed into a boiling pot. The bubbling milk within it had been from the four torn off breasts of the calf's mother, number fifty-nine. Deep down she felt terrible, but, to be honest, the main thought on her mind as she stared at the cooking soup was _'That smells delicious…'_

After hours of blood, urine, screams, and simple brutal agony they were finally down to the last 'gift'. She had watched all eighty-eight deaths prior with forced indifference that, regrettably, became easier to fake. Her eyes, now glowing melted silver with blood rushing up to overtake the delicately menacing color, had begun to watch eagerly for the splatter and took no delight in the bloodless deaths. Her large, twitching ears caught every single begged plea for mercy and planted them away within the deepest confines of her mind. A slashing, whip-like tail spoke of her eagerness. Her dear kemono was in control.

Strangely it did not take much for her deeper conscious to take back control of her body and shove the kemono back into its cage. Not hard at all when the blue guard brought out the beautiful woman that was meant to be her sacrifice. She had olive green skin and deep green hair that shimmered purple in the firelight. Big eggplant colored eyes stared at the maiden curiously, as she thrashed against the strong guard. Kagome's mind went blank for a while before sputtering back to life with one coherent thought.

Sesshoumaru moved to block the image of the woman tied up to the wall, with wrists overhead and ankles together. His clawed, bloody hand came up to pull off the leather gag. She really did have a whole long speech thought up before hand, filled with icy remarks and screaming in her righteous fury, but at the sight of the bound woman she was left nearly broken. As the leather left her lips she gave a tentative swipe of her tongue over her lips, ignoring the dried blood she tasted there, and whimpered.

"You-You can't!"

Sesshoumaru gave a deep, dusty chuckle as he leaned close against her and whispered into her ear like before, "You had no problems earlier, dear Ka-Go-Me, as this Sesshoumaru presented you all of your other gifts. You even began to enjoy those criminal's deaths! The feel of their blood on your virgin body and the taste of their flesh were all so appealing to you earlier."

"Criminals?" Her spark began its fight within her as she howled, "And what did they do, O Mighty Sesshoumaru-Sama? Did they dare to look you in the eyes? Did they not bow before you, perhaps? What did they possibly do to deserve this!"

The temperature in the room suddenly became colder, either because of the Shihaisha's face, hardened into solid marble, or the Neko's ice laced aura. Ignoring the biting wind caused by her thrashing aura that lashed against his pale skin the golden eyed Inu turned and pointed to the three piles of mutilated bodies that had grown through the night. He gestured to one of them as he spoke in a harsh, clipped voice, "The left pile is composed of murderers of those under my rule and lesser lords on my land. The middle pile is the bodies of thieves that dared to steal from this Sesshoumaru and the Taiyoukai of these lands." He began to caress one of her bound arms as he pressed his lips against the thin skin of her ear, further burying her nose against his neck. "The right pile, the one where that ohitsuji was placed…is full of the local rapists."

That was the biggest pile.

She shuddered in disgust for once thinking the male so handsome. "In fact, that ohitsuji was one of my generals. This Sesshoumaru had suspected him of his nightly acts but had no proof before. My long travels gave time for the scent of stolen virginity to wash away, you see. So in order to confirm his transgressions I left him alone… with you. After he tied you up and began to defile your body...I thought that proof enough to get rid of him. Don't you?"

Her answer was to vomit on her body and the blood soaked ground below. _'He touched me…'_

After she got her breathing back in order she looked to the tall Inu before her. Voice shaking and rough she trembled out, "But those children…!"

"Ah, yes, the children… warped maggots that went so far as to help kill those their own age it seems." He was so unfazed as he said that. Now that she thought about it, hadn't he spoken more this night than he had in the three years she'd known him?

'_**Blood really gets him talkative I suppose…**__ Shut up, Kemono-San, we'll talk about your vampire tendencies later! __**I'm you, remember? So you just called yourself a vampire! **__Shut up ,shut up ,shut up! This is not the time for being a brat! __**You started it…**__'_

Remembering the eggplant eyed woman, Kagome searched golden orbs pleadingly, "But what of the woman, Sesshoumaru! She's pregnant! She could give birth any moment now! You can't kill her without killing the baby!"

She was struck by his hand and his glare, "Do not presume you can tell this Sesshoumaru what he can and cannot do, Onna!" She opted to stare at the rich blood on the floor rather than speak.

Seeing her silence for what it was, a blessing, Sesshoumaru moved back to the tied up woman with the bright eyes. He stroked her cheek lovingly, and it would be a lie to say that the woman didn't lean into the touch of the god-like male or that the Maiden of the North turned green. Those same claws caressed over her breasts, down to the bulging stomach that held her babe. Those same claws sliced her open from naval to vagina in a single slash and pulled out her womb.

The two women and the tiny babe wailed for the night outside to listen and dance to.

"My baby!" the woman cried. "Give me my baby! Please! I just need my baby!"

"Sesshoumaru! You can't kill her! It's just a baby!" There were tears in her silver eyes, the first she'd shed all night. The Inu could see the damnably sweet heart of hers breaking. He placed the baby on a low table, covered with fresh and dried blood, and let the child squirm and cry for food and warmth. Turning to the silver and black haired woman he gave another hard stare, "This Sesshoumaru does not repeat himself on his reasoning and what he can or cannot do and you would do well to remember that. I will kill this child, lest she become like her mother."

The Maiden glared darkly at him, "She's just a baby, Sesshoumaru. You don't know if she'll become evil like her mother. Everyone should be given a chance at life"

The youkai let out a little tsk as he walked over to the woman with the sliced gash. He gripped her pale chin roughly as he stared into her deep purple eyes. "Do you think this woman cries for her child because she loves it, Miko no Youkai? Because the real reason she begs is simply because she's going to die without it. She wants her baby's heart."

A chill ran down her spine as Kagome looked at the woman that was so lovely as she wailed for her child. "W-what…?"

"She is a special breed of Youkai female, that in order to stay alive must feast on a child's heart every six months. In times of desperation they will impregnate themselves and eat their own child's heart. If the child is female it will grow to be just like its despicable mother that tried to eat the heart of my ward." By this point, the anger was so thick in the Inu's voice that it didn't take a second thought for him to crush the woman's jaw and push his clawed hand through to her brain.

Kagome continued to cry as she watched the Youkai pick up the wiggling mass and move towards her. She couldn't think. As she stared at the body that could so easily become a murder, she could barely move her chest to breathe. "Oh Kami-Sama…"

Choosing to ignore the Neko's shuddered whisper, the Western ruler stared at her in a slow, calculating manner, as if oblivious to the cries of both baby and woman. "Kagome." He waited for her eyes to slide up and meet his before continuing. "Tell me… Why did you come to this Sesshoumaru, desperate to mate a man that is and always will be a killer?"

She looked away once again and whimpered. She knew he'd ask it sooner or later. Isn't that why they were here? In a dungeon, of all things, she would tell him why she was so eager to mate with someone like him. It wasn't a very appealing thought, but she had to do it. She needed to.

"You are my intended, and it was my father's dying wish that I mate you. Together we will become two powerful rulers of the-"

The loud sound of skin against skin echoed off the walls as the Silver Inu glared down at her. "Do not lie to me like I am some Hanyou with an ill developed sense of smell. You will tell me the truth now or die a liar."

Her heart pounded and her lips moved in an inaudible whisper.

"Speak up, you foolish female!"

Straightening her spine she stared at him and screamed as loud as her lungs would allow.

"I LOVE YOU, YOU ARROGANT PRICK! Since that day in your father's tomb I've wanted and adored you! Since that time you saved me from the Band of Seven's Mukotsu I've wanted to get to know you! Since I first saw you with Rin I knew you weren't the cold Youkai that everyone else saw and feared!" Her voice nearly croaked as she resisted the urge to sob, "I've loved you for so long…"

The silence between them stretched on for what seemed like hours. Not even the sound of the crying baby seemed to faze them as they stared into each other's eyes. One set was cool and hard while the other streamed with tears.

"Prove it." He said simply. "Prove to me of this love you claim to bear. Eat this child's heart, Maiden of the North!"

Silver eyes bulged as he thrust the wiggling mass against her lips. She could feel the baby's heart flutter beneath her lips. The small clawed hands scraped at her skin and pulled at her hair while the screaming made her ears throb. All of it went unnoticed to the inner turmoil that was her mind.

Could she do it? Take the life of this innocent child's life just to prove her love for the dark demigod before her? Did she have it in her to let it live even? Let it live and eat the hearts of children like itself? Could she let it live if it meant losing everything she strived for?

"Keep in mind…that if you do not consume the baby's heart I will let it live and allow it to feast on your Kitsune child's heart. You, of course, would be allowed to watch."

Thoughts swarmed in her mind's eye of her son, her Shippou. The urge to protect her child flowed through her. She had adopted the little fur ball a year after her travels started. He'd just now finally gotten used to calling her "Momma"! She couldn't, wouldn't let anything happen to him if she could stop it!

Without a second thought she bit down on the little chest. The burst of blood into her mouth was strangely intoxicating. The bones of the babe's ribcage broke under her teeth like toothpicks as her tongue searched for the beating morsel. She pulled it into her mouth, chewed and swallowed it whole, either resisting the urge to either gag or moan she wasn't sure.

The limp body was dropped down to the floor like a used rag doll, as silver met gold. A maroon stripped hand moved to thread fingers into lush black and silver hair. Pale lips moved closer towards red plump ones, till they finally met and meshed.

The Maiden had spent weeks, months, years… Imagining what his lips would feel like against hers. Would their kisses be slow and gentle, simple caresses of flesh against flesh? Perhaps, their kisses would be fire and passion, a proverbial inferno of moving bodies that danced to their own music?

She wasn't expecting ice; cold, unrelenting, frigid ice. She moved her lips slowly against his, desperate to make his lips come alive like her heart just did. She didn't think it would work until a fire she couldn't even dream of in her wildest fantasies consumed her. It consumed them. Blood was forgotten for now; in its place were the sweet pleasures of one another's arms.

CSKitten: Comments are appreciated!


	5. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

He had known she'd change. She told him right after he first slipped and called her "Okaa-San". She had been attacked by a lightning youkai during one of their numerous visits to the surrounding villages. Seeing her fall to the ground so limply, like a used burlap sack, was horrifying. Even the position she landed in looked exactly like that of his dead mother.

His short legs couldn't get him there fast enough, as he ran to the raven haired onna. Her eyes were closed and her hair was singed and tangled against her back as she lay heavily on her side. His brain knew she'd be okay; her healing powers were covering her body in a pink glow already. His heart didn't listen to his brain though; because all it could do was scream "Okaa-san, don't die! Please, don't die!" It had taken him a while to realize that he said it aloud, but no time at all to see her smile in her semi-conscious state.

From then on, she'd been his mother and it made sleeping so much easier. The nightmares became less omnipresent when he was in her arms. Admittedly, it had taken him a while to easily call her his mother; and he knew it hurt her, deep down, but she never complained. They became their own little family together.

As the day of her eighteenth birthday drew near they- together with Shoga- discussed the numerous scenarios that could possibly ensue. "If Sesshoumaru does this we do that…" or "If Inu Yasha reacts like this we put a stone statue on him…" Things like that were planned far in advance so safety would be priority.

They never planned for this.

"Okaa-San!"

His choked sob echoed back at him cruelly. Apparently, when Sesshoumaru had grabbed his mother, the Youkai was so livid that he didn't notice his other passenger until they were already at the seaside palace. With the cold glare he had received he was sure Sesshoumaru was going to kill him. Instead, he was thrown into a cell by himself, left him with torn clothes and a scraped knee that stung.

He could smell the others. Were they his fellow inmates? There was a woman in the cell next to him, she was pregnant and crying at him. "Please!" she whimpered, "I'm going to die, little kitsune, before my baby is born! At least let me experience what it's like to hold a child before it comes to an end! Please, sweet angel! Take pity on me…" Her green arms were stretched through the bars of their adjoining cells, her deep purple eyes shone with tears in the dim torch light.

A hug sounded so good right now. A wail ripped from his throat, the pads of his feet scuffed on the hard rock floor as he ran, tears clouding his vision. "O-ONEE-SAN! I'M SO SCARED!" The tears filling his eyes didn't disguise the hunger in the woman's purple orbs. He fell to the ground in a painful skid, his paws bleeding as the onna's eyes glowed and her once humanly flat teeth became sharp jagged spikes in her mouth. Her clawed hands scrabbled inches from his feet as she screamed.

"FEED ME! GIVE ME YOUR HEART! YOU'LL DIE ANYWAY SO WHY NOT IN MY BELLY?" His fists pressed against his eyes and he wailed louder. How was it possible for her voice to sound so demented!

His limbs burned as he raced back to the middle of his own rat infested cell, away from the woman's grasping hands. His tiny arms wrapped around his torn pants and he sobbed, listening to the screams of the woman and the other hundreds of prisoners. He closed his eyes tight and began to rock back and forth in a steady motion trying to imagine that wonderful smile his beloved Okaa-san would always send his way.

The evilly beautiful onna started to sing. Over and over the same lullaby until the tune was burned into his mind. He just wanted to get away! His sobs became a melody to her voice as the night dragged on, the occasional scream from a prisoner being hauled away simply added vocals.

"Nen nen cororiyo, ocororiyo

_Go to sleep, go to sleep_

boya wa yoiko da, nen ne shina

_You are a good boy, go to sleep_

boya no omori wa, doko e itta

_Where did your nanny go_  
ano yama koete, sato e itta

_She crossed over a mountain and went to her village_

sato no miyage ni nani morota

_What souvenir did you get from her village_  
den den daikon ni, sho no fue"

_A small drum and a flute_

"Nenneko! nenneko!

_Sleep, sleep,_  
Nenneko yo !

_Sleep, my child!_  
Oraga akabo wa

_When was my_  
Itsu dekita ?

_Baby made?_  
San-gwatsu, sakura no

_In the third month,_  
Saku toki ni;

_In the time of the blooming_  
Dori de o-kao ga

_Therefore the color of the honorable_  
Sakura-iro."

_Face of my child is the color of the cherry-blossom._

„Nenneko, nenneko, nenneko ya!

_Sleep, sleep, sleep, my child!_  
Netara o-kaka e tsurete ina !

_If you sleep I will go home to fetch your mother!_  
Okitara gagama ga totte kama!"

_If you stay awake the Gagama will catch and bite you!_

Shippou held his little hands to his ears and screamed.

"Kiree na…"

And it was truly beautiful, the view of the rolling waves and the endless stars in the night sky. Her silver eyes twinkled as she stared at the lovely view from within the hot spring pool she rested in. It was amazingly constructed, the hot spring. A waterfall of the naturally heated mineral water flowed into a large pool of limestone walls and fine squishy sand at your feet. The used water sloshed out the other side to flow along veins within the carved granite walkway where it reached the numerous willow and sakura trees that surrounded the pool.

The maiden was certainly awed by the beauty of this bath house garden. From the gentle sway of the willow branches to the view of the ocean beyond, it all worked together to create a utopia of tranquility. Even the canopy above, made from pure silk, was layered and strung into numerous gauze-like curtains that flowed rain water away from the bath itself, protecting this little bubble of peacefulness from being destroyed.

_I wish my heart were as peaceful…'_

The maiden sighed as she leaned over in the sloshing water and hugged her knees, trying to let the sound and feel of the water calm her, heal her. _'I can't believe he… I ate that baby's… But oh Kami-Sama… The feel of his hands…'_ Here she blushed a pretty pink and dunked her head deeper into the steaming water till her nose was just barely above the surface.

She had kissed him. She had kissed one of the most fearsome youkai males in all of Japan. And she loved it despite of everything.

Her mind supplied the lovely images of what had happened just minutes prior. Their kiss was so cold at first, but once she actually responded… It was like something snapped within the Shihaisha and there was suddenly a wild fire between them! Their lips caressed in such perfect sync it was like they'd been together for years. Oh, the way he gripped her red bottom lip between his teeth and pulled, it was like pure electricity had been shot through her body.

When she felt something wet and rough against her lips, a confused gasp escaped, before her mouth was filled with a new wonderful flavor. Mint and peaches perhaps? Their tongues caressed, one skilled and the other hesitant but eager. He was so rough but nothing he did hurt her. Even when those lethal claws scratched down her spine, it was bliss instead of fear that made her shudder from head to toe.

The first restraint to go was the one keeping her head still, causing their heads to tilt together. Allowing their kiss to deepen…

She didn't notice the pain in her arms as the rough coils of rope slid off, forcing her to lean against him for balance. Her only concern was to wrap those suddenly desperate arms around his long neck. The feel of his lashes against her cheek as golden eyes finally closed was a simple pleasure all in its own.

She never noticed the aches or pains in her sore, stretched muscles, instead she focused on the pleasure this tall Youkai was showering on her. She concentrated on the feel of his tongue against her neck that made her spasm and gasp. The feel of his hand pressed against the small of her back as he pressed his hard body against hers.

She felt more than heard the sizzle of his whip as its energy crackled in the air. The long tendril of power sliced the binding that kept her feet up and suspended. Had she forgotten about those too in lieu of pleasure? She would've laughed it off, had her feet not hit the ground with a squishy splash.

The memory made her shudder even within the warm mineral water. The only thing she remembered after staring at the pool of blood that reached her ankles was that pool suddenly getting closer as she fainted. Next thing she knew she was laying on one of the limestone benches beside the steaming pool, a bucket on the ground by her head and a bundle of clothes with a tan towel at her feet. Her movements had been robotic at best, as she used the bucket, and accompanying sponge, to wash off the layers of dried blood that coated her body and matted her hair.

Once in the heated spring, her first concern was scrubbing her body with the fine sand at the bottom, removing layers of skin till she was close to raw. Once that was done, she was left to do nothing more but sit. With that sitting came the contemplation of "now".

Now what?

What'll happen now?

Will I die from embarrassment now or later?

She had told him she loved him and, while it was true, she wondered if that could change. Could she love a brutal killer like the silver haired Shihaisha? So many lives were torn from the world in just a few hours. All of them were used as a twisted gift for her. They all had died, because of her.

'_**What are you complaining about? They would have died anyway! Besides… You heard what he said, they were all criminals. They deserved their deaths.**__ I know but do you think they deserved deaths like that, so foul and gruesome? __**Something tells me that he could have done worse, Kokoro.**__ What…? __**Think about it, their deaths were much too quick. Yes, it was painful, but that pain didn't last long.**_'

It was true. Their pain was definitely obvious and deliberate but after witnessing the skill he used in each death, it was also obvious that he was sparing them at the same time. He had kept true to his word that if she watched their deaths would end quickly and before sunrise, but sunrise was a long way off when they had finished. He certainly could have kept it going much longer than he did.

Add on the fact that he was so blasé about the whole affair, to the point where he seemed to be almost bored, and it just got more confusing! And so, the more she thought about it, the odder it became.

'_**Perhaps he was trying to prove himself to you**__. Maybe… But I can't imagine him needing to prove himself in any way to me personally. I've seen what he can do on multiple accounts and he knows it…'_

She ducked her head below the water so all that could be seen were her twitching ears. _'Men are so frustratingly confusing!'_ She blew out an angry torrent of bubbles before bursting out of the water's surface with a gasp and stomping to the edge of the pool. The water just wasn't relaxing anymore.

She dried herself off with the strangely thick towel before wrapping up her long, heavy locks and creating a damp turban on top of her head. Searching through the set of clothing that was beneath the towel, she realized she had two clothing options. Either wear the standard, diaper-like loincloth or put the once white lace thong against her body again, a tough decision that resulted in the answer being a resounding "Neither"!

Once that decision was made she carefully slipped on the white nagajuban followed by the beautiful black furisode. At first glance, it was simple, but then there was the slightest of shimmers from the fabric. It was covered with small sakura blossom designs, embroidered with a black, shimmery thread.

As she wrapped the light gray obi around her, she watched the sun's first rays of morning dance over three tops in the East before that first spark of light hit the Western Sea. Even though the inky waters tried to fight off the rays with its huge, crashing waves, the sun won out and soon the waters became clear and blue. The light would always win against the dark, it would seem.

A gentle wind from the North blew against her, making her wrap her arms around herself tightly, grateful for the heavy silk of the furisode and the warmth it offered in the chilly early morning air that smelled of flowers and sand.

Peace was broken by a sudden and new smell penetrating her mind, a mix of salt and smoke. The silver-eyed onna turned to stare at the youkai that stood on the other side of the pool, his smile marred by one of the four scars that pulled down the left corner of his lip. He was a tall man with pale skin, shoulder-length white hair that shimmered, small slate grey eyes, and, strangely enough, there was a black dot in the middle of his orange lips.

The strangest thing of all was the scars on his face. They looked like painful, bubbled claw marks as they went from temple to chin. Part of his left eye looked to be melted and droopy as the skin bubbled and flapped over the outer corner. There was even a slight hole near the apple of his cheek where pale, white bone was visible. It was almost painful for her to look upon, he must have been so beautiful before the obviously tragic incident.

"If you are ready, dear maiden," he said in a thundering baritone voice, "would you please follow me to your rooms?"

She gave a hesitant nod as she followed after him, her bare and still slightly red, raw feet padding soundlessly on the sand and sakura petal covered walkway. He was too extravagantly dressed in his black and white silk kamishimo to be a mere servant, but who was she to complain to help at this hour?

Instead of walking in front of her, he moved to walk beside her towards the numerous steps to the castle's ground entrance and gave her another one of his half tilt smiles. "It is good to meet you Kagome-Sama. I am Sesshoumaru-Sama's head advisor, Hong." She flushed prettily when he winked at her. "And for the record… You look equally as lovely clothed as you do nude."

Her right eyebrow started to twitch as a violent growl built at the back of her throat. '_That __**ASS!**_'

Without thinking, she lunged at the tall youkai, hissing as her claws elongated and took aim… At air? Before she could reach him, she was being held by the scruff of her neck while a deep laugh sounded behind her. "My… Feisty one, aren't you? Slow as the years but no less interesting!" Her tail bristled and slashed against his legs as she let out a guttural growl and hiss.

"PUT ME DOWN, YOU JERK!"

"Why, little onna, that just sounds so unappealing." He pulled her against his chest and wrapped his arms around her snugly, pinning her arms down to her sides. As the warmth of his body spread against her back; she felt her cheeks also heat up. Despite his facial scars, he was still a very attractive man. "I'd much rather find other uses for your… passionate emotions."

She opened her mouth to reply but it wasn't her voice that came out. Instead, it was a smooth, silkily masculine voice that she knew and loved so well. "The last time you were affected by 'passionate emotions' such as hers, you lost part of your eye." The orange and black lips that were pressed against her hair pouted as he straightened up and let the maiden go from his firm grasp.

"And here, life as your advisor was just becoming interesting!"

The Shihaisha chose to ignore the Hakuchoo and instead direct his golden gaze on the flustered neko onna. Her rosy cheeks made the royal blue stripes even more noticeable as she straightened out her kimono. "It would seem than Hong is not an adequate guide for you, Neko no Onna. This Sesshoumaru shall accompany you both."

Before Kagome could thank or protest— she wasn't sure which one would be appropriate at the moment— he turned on his heel and walked off with his usual air of arrogance.

"Humph!"

She stomped after the silver haired youkai stubbornly, forgetting about the Hakuchoo that was currently taking up and in the rear. "My… Kagome-Sama certainly is lovely on all sides. I'm not sure which one I like most!" Twin growls tore through the morning air, causing the bird to, wisely, keep his mouth shut.

Thankfully the silence left the rest of the walk peaceful. Well, peaceful enough that the tiny maiden could take in her surroundings. Nothing was ever truly lax in the presence of an annoyed Sesshoumaru.

Looking around, Kagome quickly noticed that the castle was certainly different from what she had originally expected. Aside from the thousands of stairs that lead to the main grounds, there was nothing connecting the castle and its gardens to the earth. It simply floated on air till it slopped down to the marbled wall protected hot springs and the ocean docks.

Protection and beauty were certainly a key element but as she stared at the flights of stone carved steps ahead… She found herself really wishing for an escalator. At least it gave her time to marvel at the tall beauty that was the Western Palace. Its walls were made of black stone and white birch planks and it was at least nine stories high, not including the six towers posted on all corners of the hexagon shaped castle.

The inner hallways were large and spacious with stone lanterns and candelabras. Some of the fusuma doors were painted with different scenes depicting the wars of current and past Youkai rulers. Others were painted with romance in mind, showing the courtship of mates, growth of friendship, and the beauty of nature. Two different passions, both fiery in their own rights, filled the mood of the castle.

'Yet the Alpha of the palace is so cold…'

Fifteen minutes later she found herself with frizzy dry hair and inside the most beautiful room she'd seen so far. The fusuma was painted with a scene of a great somei-yoshino bent over a flowing river, the moon highlighting the small white blossoms from the horizon. The set of two foot servants slid the doors open to reveal what was possibly the largest room she'd ever seen, with more square footage than the bottom level of her surrogate family's home.

The numerous shoji screens were pulled open, allowing her to see the different "rooms" within the room. The color scheme was a vast range of purples, as she stepped onto the tatami mats in awe. In the corner farthest from the doorway on the left, sectioned off by screens, was a long, low set table of red maple with black lacquered designs surrounded by large and plush mulberry stained pillows. In the middle of the left wall was a floor to ceiling window that spanned three arm lengths. Part of the sun's rays dancing on the lapping waves was blocked by an intricately designed lattice stretched across the bottom half of the window; while the rest was surrounded by sheer gauze-like silks to act like curtains. There were more pillows placed in front of the window for comfortable viewing.

Centered in the middle of the rooms was a queen sized futon place on a low black lacquered platform. The light amethyst comforter was pulled back to reveal the lavender sheets and the off-white pillows that were piled at the head of the bed. At the foot was a low maple trunk that held extra blankets and pillows, a set of slippers was placed next to it.

On the far wall were three scroll paintings. The scroll to the left was of a crane about to take flight from a lake. On the right was one of a black and white koi jumping back into the water. The middle scroll was the most detailed and largest scroll, of a mountain scene with a tiger stalking through the bamboo. Four bamboo lattices were placed between and on either side of the scrolls, allowing a creeping kudzu vine to crawl along and between. Tiny gentle springs of water fell from the ceiling into carved out bamboo spouts that were situated next to the two large pots that the kudzu based out of. She watched those spouts plunge forward long enough to fill the kudzu pots before coming back up to catch the water for the next day.

The right side of the room was sectioned off into three areas. In the far corner was a changing area filled with black and royal purple pillows, three large cedar trunks, and a vanity mirror with metal vines crawling around it. A black canvas makeup box with purple flowers sat next to the mirror. In the middle section was the fusuma that lead into what she presumed to be the bathroom and to the right of it was section three, her study of sorts. It had a low desk with an ink well, a quill with violet plumage, and blank scrolls included. Two bookcases were set on the opposite side of the desk, filled with new and worn scrolls with secrets hidden inside.

"Sugoi…" the maiden whispered.

She walked around slowly, taking it all in as she ran her fingers over one of the kudzu's purple flowers. Everything was so breathtaking…

She spun to thank her host but found only the smiling advisor, Hong, standing there. It was hard for her not to frown. Sesshoumaru had disappeared into thin air once again.

"Where…? Where's Sesshoumaru?"

The Hakuchoo continued to give her his lopsided grin as he walked around the room, mimicking her awed inspection. "Sesshoumaru-**Sama**, left to prepare for a meeting that will transpire at the highest sun today and your appearance was requested." She turned a pretty pink as she looked to the ground and cringed, both because of his obvious correction and the thought of this meeting. What would it be about?

Before she could ask, Hong brought up a question of his own. "How does the Lady like her rooms, might I ask?"

Silver glanced around as a bright smile contorted red lips. "They're beautiful! Absolutely stunning! I didn't think Sesshoumaru had such great taste!" She chose to ignore his cringe this time. He was "Sesshoumaru" to her.

"Yes… Well, Sesshoumaru-Sama has spent a full year on this room. Decorating and arranging it to fit the needs of the woman he had chosen as his mate." His back was turned to her, so he missed the look of pain as her smile fell.

"He... Had chosen a mate?"

Hong turned around to grin at her again. "Why, yes, he did. He spent years searching to see if she could be the one, and she had proven herself to him. So he had planned to begin courting her during the next lunar cycle. That is… till we received your letter. Then things changed, of course."

"I see…" was her monotone response as she stared down at the tatami mats. Her emotionless state was lost on the Hakuchoo as he continued like nothing happened. "I must adjourn, but worry not, dear maiden! Your dressing maids will be here shortly." And in a swirl of feathers, he was gone, leaving a small pile of white and red feathers where he once stood.

"Tsk. That dastardly male new I was coming didn't he!"

Kagome let out a gasp as she looked to find two women standing in the doorway. One was a tall and busty blonde with large red eyes and long fingers with sharp tips. She was dressed in an extravagant kimono of the deepest crimson with a spider web pattern on the corner to signify her race. The other wore a simple tan colored kimono as she hid behind the spidery onna. She was shorter than the Kumo with green eyes and hair that clashed viciously with her maroon obi.

The Kumo nodded to the green one for her to clean up the mess of feathers before walking up to Kagome and bowing low. "I am Hiromi, head seamstress of the Western Palace and wife to the insufferable Hong." She looked up at the maiden with her large red orbs and smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my maiden."

Despite the sadness brewing in her heart, Kagome couldn't stop herself from smiling back. And in no time at all, it seemed, she was standing before the entrance to the High Court. Her hair was brushed till it shined and placed into an elaborate and braided bun by the green one, later named as Bunko. Hiromi had fitted her in an ice blue furisode with a scene of a royal blue koi swimming up her right side. The obi was deep granite with small waves stitched into the bottom.

She could hear her name being shouted within the court before the large Inu guards pulled open the heavy doors and a muttering Jaken lead her to a plush maroon and gold pillow next to the platform the handsome Shihaisha sat on comfortably. Gold eyes turned to her as he gave her the barest of nods before turning forward again. She smiled lightly. At least he showed her the respect due to her.

There was a barked order from one of the higher servants before the doors were once again slid open to reveal the Western Castle's latest guest. She was a tall Neko with round, sandy ears that were almost lost within the mass of sunshine curls that were piled on top of her head in a waterfall design. Her narrow eyes were only a slightly darker shade of yellow than her hair, as she stared curiously back at the silvery maiden. She was beautiful with her curvaceous form and womanly elegance.

Especially, in her stylish furisode composed of various shades of purple…

'_**So… that's who the room was designed for, it would seem…**__'_

"Introducing, Sasura-Hime, here to petition the ruler of the West!" cried the announcer.

Sasura stepped up to Sesshoumaru's platform before bowing low to the ground. After the tall Shihaisha gave his order, she rose slowly with a practice grace that made even Kagome jealous. "Why, Sesshoumaru-Sama!" the yellow raion's voice was as womanly and seductive as her body, "It's wonderful to see you again, but I thought you knew that if you should have need for partner in bed you can always come to me. Not resort to a concubine such as your guest here." Yellow eyes caught silver as pale lips smirked, "I doubt she's even a virgin, like me." The voice that was so beautiful now made the Miko's ears fall back in displeasure.

Sesshoumaru, on the other hand, didn't miss a beat as his own sultry voice boomed within the room. "It is my pleasure to have you visiting, Sasura-Hime, but as my guest I ask you treat Kagome-Sama with the proper respect of her stature as Hime of the North… Also, I recall you giving that same testimony to Kuza the Southern diplomat, Hisoka the advisor to the great sea's ruler, and Sadao the man that tried to kill your father last month. Last I checked, all of them proved you wrong."

'_Must not snort… Must not snort…__**Bitch deserved it…**__'_

Surprisingly, instead of becoming angry or even embarrassed, the yellow onna just laughed, long and loud. "Oh Sesshoumaru-Sama… It's so sweet to know that you care for me enough to keep track of me. Perhaps it is useful to have known you for so long…"

"Perhaps. Now state your business here, Sasura-Hime."

The yellow raion stepped closer towards Sesshoumaru, her eyes shining with sultry desire as she kneeled in front of him and leaned close, their lips barely touching. "I want to finally be your Mate, Sesshoumaru-Sama..."

Kagome watched with wide silver eyes as the woman pressed thin lips to Sesshoumaru's pale ones, and at that exact moment time stopped.

Thinking stopped.

Breathing stopped.

Her heart stopped.

Till, finally, she gave up to the dark waters of unconsciousness.

Growing up she had never really been fond of the dark, it was simply too scary. It held too many mysteries and unknown horrors. Yet now, as she floated in this colorless sea, she decided that the dark was beautiful. The darkness saved her from starring at the faces of her failure, saved her from witnessing the truth for another agonizing moment…

She was not meant for love.

All possibilities for true love were lost. Hojo, the kind boy that tried so hard to receive her love, finally gave up on her and left. Koga the Ookami Purinsu, though he truly did love her, was bound to Ayame whether he liked that fact or not. Inu Yasha could never love her like he loved Kikyou, could never see her as anything more than a copy. Funny thing was that she could never look at him as anything but a copy of his brother. His cold, heartless, beautiful brother that seemed to be made from the moon's very beams.

"_S-Sesshoumaru…"_

When she was first sent back to her true time and met Inu Yasha she had assumed that he was her betrothed, so her heart had built a bud of love for him that had seemed so strong. Till she saw Sesshoumaru for the first time, and everything seemed to shift beneath her very feet.

But he was so terrible! As cruel as he was lovely, a white rose within a tangled bush of thorns and blood. She couldn't let herself love a man like that! So she buried her heart deep inside her and tried to forget the truth. After all, she was the only one that knew of their betrothal. She didn't have to tie herself to the evil youkai.

That's when she forced herself to love Inu Yasha, after all, he was sweet and loving despite his thick headedness. He treated her well for the most part— even if he would leave her for the dead. But in Kaguya's castle, when she'd finally kissed him, it was so vile that for a moment she wondered if he was corpse made of clay instead of Kikyou! Everything in her body rejected him in that moment and her heart screamed for the ruler of the West so loud she thought she'd go deaf. She couldn't imagine the pain and disgust getting any worse at that moment. Sweet Inu Yasha proved her wrong though; when he whispered his love into her once human ears.

"_I love you… Kikyou…"_

She had thought that her heart would break for the last time afterwards. But seeing that raion press her body against Sesshoumaru… After watching their lips meet so intimately. She thought for sure her heart had shriveled died somewhere within the acids of her stomach.

She gave up. There was no chance for her to find true love, to find someone that would love her no matter what, to find someone that would love her for her, not her strength, her beauty, or her rank. Just love her for her true self, Kagome, the silly girl that loved with everything she had.

Maybe it was easier now, admitting defeat. After all, no longer did she have to let herself be broken and used. No longer did she need to strive to be the best for her Only. Life could be so simple now.

'_O cruel and sadistic darkness, you hide the shame yet allow the tears to come forth? How heart breaking you are… Do you wish me to drown in these tears?'_

So be it, she'd happily drown. Drown in this world where she could make believe he loved her. That his arm was wrapped tight around her body, holding her close to his hard chest, and his lips to her furry ear, calling her name. _"Kagome…"_

He would brush back her hair as he declared that his cold heart could only love her.

"_Kagome…"_

She'd finally be happy.

"Kagome."

"_Sesshoumaru…"_

She squirmed in the strangely warm waters. It was maddening how **fuzzy** it felt though…

"Onna, wake up."

No… He wouldn't say that. He'd take her hand and whisper sweet words like…

"If you do not awaken quickly, this Sesshoumaru shall be forced to throw you into the Western waters."

'_**Unconsciousness is bliss I suppose… **__Yeah…_'

He watched with veiled curiosity as blue stained eyelids fluttered open to reveal the sparkling silver beneath. Looking at her now, brought flashes of the past three years that he'd seen of her. The occasional wild thought had always wormed its way into his brain that her body was not meant for her true self and potential power. It would seem fate agreed.

Her face contorted into owlish confusion, which amused his more ironic side in light of her neko heritage. He found himself strangely grateful to the small bundle in his arm. If not for her and her fainting spell, he would not have received a good excuse to remove himself from the arms of the lust filled Hime. Her father supplied the Western Castle with the highest quality sake. Sesshoumaru doubt he'd keep receiving that supply if he ripped off the arms of the Hime and send them back to her father.

He was interrupted from his musings on how best to packaged bloodied limbs by the small voice of his current charge.

"Sesshoumaru…?"

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Hai. This Sesshoumaru assumes you were expecting his half breed brother?"

She looked away from him and flushed. "Iie. I was just surprised…Um… What are you doing here?"

"After you nearly cracked your skull on the floor, this Sesshoumaru departed from the company of Sasura-Hime and brought you back to your rooms. You have temporarily reduced this Sesshoumaru to a common house nurse." At the mention of the raion the onna stiffened in his grasp and seemed to grow colder. Her face snapped back towards his own, giving him a full view of the vibrant turquoise bleeding into the whites of her eyes. Her kemono was trying to take control. "I see. Well then, Sesshoumaru-**Sama, **I shall relieve you from your task as my caretaker so you may spend time with your whorish mate, Sasura. I revoke my claim on you."

It was difficult to decide which emotion he wanted to favor; anger or confusion. He rarely let anyone see his confusion over any matter so he settled for the first option as he pushed her back onto the furs of her bed. His large hand wrapped around her throat. "What is this nonsense you decided to taint the air with?"

She started to growl as the turquoise started to consume her eyes more. Her legs flailed and her hands tugged till he was forced to pin her body and legs down with his own and wrap his mokomoko around her, keeping her arms still. Her voice was almost savage as she screeched, "Don't play dumb with me Sesshoumaru! Hong told me everything! How you have planned these very rooms for your chosen mate! How you'd spent years searching her out to make sure she was what you wanted! How despicable of you, Sesshoumaru! Torturing those people to break me! Leading me on with that fucking kiss so I'd think I had a chance! Only to give me the rooms meant for another and flaunt your relationship before my very eyes! I ha- UHK!"

He couldn't stand another moment of her blabber as he tightened his fingers around her throat. Her cheeks turned a strange purple from both her anger and lack of breath. "Listen, for this Sesshoumaru shall only say it once. Sasura-Hime is a whore whose only usefulness in my palace is to boost the morale of my troops." He watched her eyes take on the cruel tint of sadistic joy. "And as for Hong's words, hai, they're true. I spent many moons examining this onna and decided to prepare to court her; hence the creation of these rooms. I was going to begin pursuit on her on the next moon till a letter was delivered two nights ago and this Sesshoumaru realized that his chosen had made the first move."

At first, her eyes shone with confusion, but as her eyes regained their normal color, clarity came with. Her voice was a crocked whisper as he eased his hand off her jugular.

"Me…? I'm your…"

For the umpteenth time he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Hai, Little Neko. I chose you."

She went still again and her face became as blank as a Noh mask, eyes staring into nothingness. He just waited, even as he straddled her wide hips and resisted his more basic urges to press against the heat he felt against his groin. They both began to mimic stone statues as the silence dragged on till finally she inhaled a sharp breath and her heart began to pound against his chest.

She pressed her hips hard against his own as she wrapped one arm across the other on his shoulders, the look on her face that of pure bliss. He allowed himself to be pulled closer and secretly reveled in the kiss his onna initiated. If he had known years earlier that the little bundle he pressed closer against himself would be such an amazement to him, he'd have started things sooner. Because this power that they shared with just a simple kiss, was like fire.

CSKitten: Comments are appreciated!


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